Throw Me a Shovel, I've Hit Bottom
by Spiritslayer
Summary: The marriage of a certain barmaid has one Cloud Strife depressed. But will the intervention of the Turk named Elena make his life better? Or will her attempts to help him just drag him down further? Rated T, mostly for language.
1. Not You

Dusk was slowly setting upon Junon. A chilly breeze wafted through the upper city, causing some to shiver as they walked. Some families were enjoying a walk along the road, looking out at sea all the while. Others were settling down at a new outdoor restaurant, waiting for their food and drinks to be delivered.

Cloud Strife was oblivious to his surroundings, however, his mind elsewhere. He was walking rather aimlessly down the road, paying no attention to those he nearly bumped into, completely shutting out those who recognized him as the main hero of Meteorfall. He wore one large sword at his hip, his hand resting subconsciously upon the hilt.

It had been a while since he had last walked anywhere. He usually rode Fenrir everywhere, especially down the streets of Junon. _What made me walk again?_ he thought to himself, his eyes looking at the road at his feet. He gradually stopped and looked out at the sea, the view unobstructed by the cannon that had once been there.

"Oh, hell no. It just _can't_ be you," he heard someone groan from behind him.

He recognized the voice and only said, "It's you."

"Don't be giving me that line of crap," he heard his unwanted companion snap. "Of course it's me! I have a right to walk Junon! A _right!_"

"Then keep walking," he said simply.

A sigh was barely audible to him. "You're a real pain sometimes, y'know that?" As though to spite him, the new companion joined him at the side of the road. "So, Cloud. How's life been treating you since you saved the world?"

He didn't answer, he didn't look at the woman standing next to him.

"Give _me_ the cold shoulder, will you?" she muttered. "Answer me, dammit! I'm trying to be _nice_ to you for a change!"

"...I've been better," he said slowly.

She waved her hand forward impatiently. "Emphasize, dammit! I can tell you've been better, punk! Never thought I'd see you as emo as that damned vampire that ran with you guys years ago!"

"Why do you seem to care?"

"I _don't_ care, believe me! I'm just trying to hold a halfway decent conversation here! Sheesh..." She brought her hand to her forehead, exasperated. "Have you _always_ been so emo? Huh?"

"...Maybe. I don't know."

"Oh, yeah. _That's_ real reassuring," she said, rolling her eyes. "So 'yes', you've always been this emo. Kind of depressing, actually; you've gotta learn to lighten up a little!"

"Says someone whose heart and soul are both dark," he said snidely, growing annoyed by his companion.

"Least I _have_ a heart and soul. You, on the other hand, are acting like you've just been killed by someone. And last I checked, that makes you dead and long gone. So live a little, stupid emo punk. You let your thoughts weigh you down, you'll never make it anywhere."

"You have a heart and soul? Doesn't being a Turk kind of, oh..." He faked thinking hard. "_Murder_ you inside?"

Elena huffed angrily at him. "Then let me rephrase that, Mister I'm-Too-Technical-For-My-Own-Damn-Good. At least I _had_ a heart and soul, once upon a time. Have you _ever_ had either? Ever?"

He didn't reply.

"Thought so. So shut up; you've got no room to talk, bucko." She resisted every urge to slap her former foe upside the head. "What's eating away at your head, chocobo?"

"'Chocobo'?" he repeated.

"Uh... oh wait, 'Chocobohead'. Dammit, I knew I was forgetting something..." she murmured.

He rolled his eyes. "Nothing's 'eating away at my head', Goldilocks."

She smacked him upside the head. "Hey, you take that back! You don't like your nickname of 'Chocobohead', take it up with Reno, not me! He's the one that started it, remember!"

He rubbed the back of his head, but remained silent.

"So you're sure nothing's bugging you?" she said after she realized he wasn't going to say anything. "Nothing at all?"

"Nothing."

"Alright, if you say so." She pulled out a small newspaper clipping and began skimming it. "Oh, that's right. You heard that Tifa, your former girlfriend, got married, right?" She glanced at him, eager to see if she struck a nerve.

She did, more or less, as Cloud's face sank a little. "Yeah, I know. I saw it in the paper earlier."

"And how was your day up till that point?" she said casually.

"It had been going pretty well. I still think it's a lie, though..."

"Ah-_ha_! So _that's_ what's eating away at your head!" She pointed a finger almost accusingly at him. "You're unable to believe Tifa got married and you're not the one she married!"

He glared at Elena. "What of it? You going to make a big deal of it?"

"Probably should, just to see you squirm. Don't know why I'm not going to, though... It only makes the most sense, in my opinion." She grinned evilly. "Oh, Tifa got married! Oh, she didn't marry Cloud! Oh, how he aches knowing he screwed up big time and that he'll never get the chance again!"

A downcast air surrounded Cloud. "...So what...?" he murmured.

She frowned at him disdainfully. "Eh, not quite the reaction I was hoping for..." She shook her head. "Oh well. Look, you realize you screwed up, right?"

No response.

"Right?"

He ignored her.

She reached out and knocked on the back of his head as hard as she could. "Hel_-lo_! Anyone home in there?" she said, grinning.

He batted her hand away. "...Right."

"So get over it already. You screwed up and now you're paying for it. Normally, I'd tell you to just wallow in your self-supported pity party, you know."

"I know. As would Reno, Rude, Tseng and Rufus."

"Precisely. But you know what I'm going to do for you instead?"

"...Put me out of my misery?" he suggested.

"As tempting as that sounds, no. I'm going to _make_ you realize that you're being stupid and I'm going to _make_ you realize that, contrary to what I said earlier, you _do_ have a heart!"

"Oh dear God..." he murmured.

She ignored him and gave her chest a small thump. "I'm going to hook you up with someone, Cloud Strife!"

"...No thanks."

She smirked. "This isn't an option for you, you know. You're going to deal with this whether you want to or not."

He gave her an ugly look. "Just try it, I dare you," he growled at her.

"Alright then." She gave her hands a small clap and wheeled around, beaming. "Hey ladies! Looking for a good time tonight? Then look no further than--"

He clapped his hand over Elena's mouth and gave her a death glare. "You even finish that sentence, I'll slice you in half," he threatened. "Mark my words."

She peeled his hand off her mouth. "Marked," she said simply. "Well, you dared me to."

"I didn't think you were serious!" he exclaimed softly. "It was figurative, you idiot!"

"Oh, was it now?" she said, feigning ignorance. "Huh. I thought you were serious." She shook her head, then smacked him upside the head again. "What the _hell_ did you think I was going to do?! Just back down?! No! This is only for _your_ good, you idiot, so get your mind straight!"

"The only thing a Turk can hope to accomplish is evil. No good will come of you trying to help me," he said coldly. "So leave me alone, or I'll toss you into the sea."

"From here? Oh, I'd love to see you try. That is, if you can even find it in yourself to do that to poor, little me." She chuckled. "Okay, I take back the 'poor' part. Turks get paid very well, after all."

He looked away from her, not caring. "Just shut up and leave me alone," he said.

She crossed her arms. "Cloud... Listen to me. You're only hurting yourself by doing this. Take it from someone who's been there, okay? It hurts when the one you love moves on to someone else, but you have to pick up the pieces and go with the flow. I know what you're going through right now, because I've been there before. I've done what you're doing, and nothing came of it. Hopelessly clinging to your empty dreams that something will happen, that you'll wake from this 'nightmare'... You're only self-destructing that way. You need to face the facts and get over it."

He looked at her slowly, a look of sudden understanding in his eyes. "Elena..."

She looked away from him.

"...Alright. I guess I can try moving on."

She gave a small nod. "That's more like it." She wheeled around again, cupping her hands to her mouth. "Hey ladies! Looking for--"

His hand brushed hers away and clapped over her mouth. "No. Just..." He heaved a sigh. "What in _God's_ name are you thinking?!"

"What?" she said almost innocently. "It's as the old saying goes: 'The love of your life might be found on the street one night.' So it's worth a shot, right?"

"Who the hell says that line of crap...?" he muttered. "I think you're delusional."

"Well, you heard it first, so remember that."

"What did I just get myself into...?" he murmured.

She ignored him. "Well then, if you're not willing to try it out on the street, we have to go somewhere..." She thought about it for a while. "Bars are no good; most women in a bar are buzzed, at the bare minimum, so it's always failure..."

He listened to Elena think aloud, wondering how he could move on when his heart was still captured by Tifa. "Elena."

"Huh? What's up?"

"...You said you've been down this road before."

"Yeah, what of it?"

"What'd you do... when your heart was still stuck on the first guy who moved on?"

"I..." She paused a moment. "Nah, that's making life too easy for you. I had to figure it out on my own, now it's time for you to figure it out." She snapped her fingers. "Got it! Costa del Sol! Big vacation spot, big tourist attraction! Meaning lots of proverbial fish in the proverbial sea!"

He rolled his eyes at her last sentence. "You didn't even have to say 'proverbial', you know."

"But you agree, right? Costa del Sol's the best place to go for you!"

"...Sure." He shrugged, indifferent. "Whatever you think is best."

She looked at him out the corner of her eye. "This will only work if you're willing to put in the effort too, you know. If you think something's wrong with Costa del Sol, then _tell me!_ In the matchmaking game, communication is key! Don't forget it!"

"So, who played 'matchmaker' for you?"

"No one. I managed everything on my own." She grinned. "You're weak, though, so you need my help, and bad."

"Weak?" He paused. "...Maybe I am..."

"Like I said, you're weak. Come on, you! It's off to Costa del Sol with us!"

--

"Elena, why do you seem to care about my well-being so much?" he asked once they were settled in on the boat to Costa del Sol.

"Like I said, I don't care. It's just..." She frowned. "I lost a fight against you. And now you, the victor of that fight, are letting something as simple as a marriage take you out of commission? While I, the loser, have nothing to worry about? Doesn't that seem wrong to you?"

"...I guess so."

"In short, I don't want the guy who kicked my ass years ago to be so pathetically weak right now; it makes me look really bad."

He didn't reply, and she was fine with that. She looked out over the sea from their spot on the deck. "So..." she began. "What's your type of girl?"

"..."

"Look, you've gotta tell me, or I won't know who to look for! So stop being so damn stupid and just tell me!" She looked at him, annoyed.

"...I don't care who. Just... it doesn't matter to me."

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, counting backward from ten in her mind. "Look, there's no point hooking you up with someone if that relationship ends in failure and crushes your spirit all over again. So we need to make sure we find you a girl that's actually _your _type." She paused for a moment, rewording the question in her mind. "Who would you be proud to walk down the street with? Who would you be proud to call your girlfriend or wife?"

"Do you even need to ask...?" he sighed.

"Hey, Tifa's off-limits now, Chocobohead. So don't go playing 'homewrecker' on her new hubby. Pick someone else. And make it someone _alive_," she added quickly, recalling how Reno and Rude said that Cloud and Aeris got along very well, especially how he seemed smitten with her.

"Then I've got nothing," he snapped. "What do you want me to do? Start all over?"

"_No!_ You think?!" She fought all urges to scream out in frustration. "How in _hell_ did everyone put up with you? _Especially_ Tifa! What the _hell_ did she see in you?!"

This seemed to kill any signs of resistance within him, and Elena found herself glaring at a silent Cloud. "What did... she see in me...?" he finally murmured.

She pondered this for a while. "Yes, what did she see in you? Was it strength? The fact that you two were childhood friends? Or was there something else that no one else was aware of?"

"I think... it was because we were childhood friends," he said. "I can't think of anything else, though... You'd have to ask her."

The rest of the boat ride to Costa del Sol was silent between the two of them. They walked off the boat in silence when it arrived at Costa del Sol.

"...Cloud."

"What?"

She crossed her arms across her chest. "I need a few moments to think about this. I'll rent us a room each, then I'm headed to the beach. Don't go off doing anything stupid, you hear? And yes, getting drunk counts as 'something stupid', trust me. Just... go mope in a corner or something, I guess, until I'm all set to keep on helping you."

She had begun to walk away from him when she heard him mumble "Thanks, Elena."

"Don't... don't be thanking me, Chocobohead. I'm not doing this for you, remember; I'm doing this for _me_. I'm doing this so _I_ don't look like a weakling for losing to _you_." She gave an angry huff and walked toward the inn.

--

_I could leave and she'd never know, much less care,_ Cloud thought as Elena walked toward the inn. _She has something up her sleeve, and it involves me somehow._ He looked to the town entrance and took a slow step toward it.

"...Cloud?" he heard someone say from behind him. The voice made his heart sink, and he turned slowly to face the source of the voice. "Cloud! It _is _you! Oh, wow! How've you been? I didn't see you at the wedding! Did you get the invitation?"

He forced a smile, eyes avoiding the woman's eyes. She was clinging to another man's arm.

"Hey Tifa."

* * *

_So, new story, new plots, new twists. This one's going to be considerably funnier than any of my previous stories._

_I personally don't know much of Elena's character, so for the sake of story-writing, I've made her into a mischievous sort who's still willing to help people out, even former enemies. I THINK I've got it going well enough so far._

_Will Cloud and Elena wind up together at the end of this? I have no idea, to be truthful. Parts of me want to put them together, other parts of me want to just have the two of them develop a meaningful friendship. Again, I have no idea. We'll see as this story goes along._

_Cloud running into Tifa is NOT my way of making this all 'soap opera'-y. Tifa's presence in Costa del Sol will only contribute to the story in humorous methods, one way or another. Trust me._

_As I type this, I am actually working on the epilogue of my last story, Of Crystals Born. It's not done yet, but it DOES focus much more on the central pairing of the story, pitching Vincent and Tifa a few months after their reunion. I can say that you will learn where Vincent was for five months after his fight with Lizu. It also hints to other pairings that cropped up during the course of my story-writing, some of which you might not be so surprised to see, others you might be shocked to see. And yes, the Galian is still a crude SoB. Don't tell me you actually expected that to CHANGE? /sarcasm  
_

_Next chapter, Cloud learns a new definition of 'discomfort' as a conversation with Tifa and her new husband unfolds. But what happens when Elena intervenes? -Spiritslayer  
_


	2. The First Wrinkle

"So where were you the day of the wedding?" Tifa asked, smiling at Cloud. "No one saw you there."

"I... guess I didn't get the invitation," he said simply. He knew it was the truth; he hadn't received one. He looked at the man whose arm she was clinging to. "And this is... your husband, I take it."

She nodded, almost beaming. "Cloud, this is Shane Rivera. Shane, this is Cloud Strife."

"Tifa Rivera..." Cloud mumbled to himself, wondering how it sounded to him.

"Hm? You say something?" she asked, tilting her head slightly.

"No, not at all." Cloud reluctantly extended his hand to Shane. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise," Shane replied, grasping Cloud's hand firmly and giving it a shake. "Tifa's told me a lot about you, you know."

"Oh? Like what?" he asked, looking at Tifa.

Shane grinned. "Oh, a little of this, a little of that. Nothing to worry about, mind you." He slowly released Cloud's hand and looked at Tifa. "Then there's that..."

Tifa shook her head slightly at Shane. "No, please don't." She gave Cloud an almost apologetic look. "He has a slight tendency to let his mouth run away sometimes," she added, as though explaining something to Cloud.

"But, we've figured this is a good way to keep my mouth from running anywhere," Shane added with a grin. He then proceeded to plant a kiss on Tifa's lips.

Cloud felt his blood boil, and fought every urge to strike the man before him for kissing Tifa.

They eventually broke apart, and Tifa giggled. "So, what brings you to Costa del Sol, Cloud? There couldn't have been any way for you to know this was where our honeymoon would be; we kept it quiet from everyone else."

"...I just felt like traveling," he said. _How would she react if I said Elena dragged me here?_

Tifa gave him a doubting look. "Just traveling? Nothing's so simple with you, Cloud. I've known you for years, and you never travel for the sake of traveling. You always have a reason for it."

"..." He fought with his mind for a while, wondering how best to word his current situation.

Shane looked from Tifa to Cloud and back again. "Maybe he's uncomfortable around me?" he offered.

Tifa shook her head. "I don't think so. Something else is bugging him, and he seems bent on not telling me," she added, directing the last few words at Cloud. "So come on, Cloud! Why're you here in Costa del Sol?"

--

Elena stepped out of the inn, yanking her collar roughly away from her neck. "So damn hot here..." she grumbled, looking around. "Where'd that moron get off to?" Her eyes eventually found him; he was standing in front of a couple. She lowered her hand, frowning. "Don't tell me he's trying to pick up a girl who's taken already..."

It wasn't until she had taken a few steps forward that she recognized the profile of the female before him. "Oh, this is just perfect..." Elena growled, clenching fists. "I tell him to leave Tifa alone, but here he is talking to her?!"

--

"Tifa, please, let it be--" Shane began.

"But he's my friend, Shane! I need to know if something's wrong, if there's something I should be helping him with!" she protested.

He opened his mouth to speak, but decided against it. "I don't think it's anything like that..." he ventured slowly.

Cloud nodded. "Nothing's wrong, Tifa. I just..."

"Hey, Strife! You've got some serious nerve!" they all heard Elena shout.

Cloud groaned exasperatedly. "God dammit..." he grumbled under his breath.

Elena stopped in front of Cloud and glared at him. "You... idiot!" she practically screamed the last word. "Why did you come here again?! And now look at what you're doing!" She turned to Tifa and Shane, bowing her head. "Sorry to ruin your night like that," she added.

"Oh, um... no problem." Tifa was looking at Elena quizzically. She glanced at Cloud, then at Elena again. "So... Cloud's here with you?"

"Yeah, pretty much. So I'm sorry he bugged you two like that."

"Oh no, it's no trouble at all! We didn't see him at the wedding, after all, so this was a good time to catch up with him!" Tifa gave Cloud an almost patronizing look. "Shane, Elena, could you two... excuse us for a moment?"

Shane nodded, but Elena shook her head vigorously. "No can do, girl. I'm afraid Chocobohead here will try something stupid if he's left alone."

"What would he try to do?" Tifa asked, raising an eyebrow.

What Cloud might try to do, no one would learn. This was owing largely to the fact that Cloud had taken it upon himself to clap his hand over Elena's mouth. "Sorry, Tifa. I think we should leave you two be now." He bowed his head to the two of them.

"Well... if you say so..." Tifa said uncertainly. "So... we'll see you around, Cloud. And don't be a stranger in Edge! You know you'll always have a home there!"

He nodded, wincing slightly after a moment. "Yeah. Tell Denzel and Marlene I said 'hi'," he added, an annoyed tone setting ever so slightly into his voice.

Fortunately, Tifa and Shane didn't pick up on his annoyance. "Alright, I'll do that." Tifa smiled at him, then gave Elena a small nod. "You two have fun!" she added as she and Shane walked away.

He watched them go, then yanked his hand from Elena's mouth. "What the hell?!" he hissed at her, examining his hand. Bite marks were faintly visible on the balls of his hand.

"No, _you_ answer that question, buster!" she replied, almost shouting at him. "What the _hell_ were you thinking just now?! That is, by far, the most _retarded_ thing I've _ever_ seen a man do in my entire life! That's even worse than the time Reno--" She caught herself and shook her head. "No, forget it. What matters here is that _you_ almost screwed this up!"

He hung his head in shame. "...She approached me, Elena. I hadn't even known she was here until she said 'hi' to me, so stop going off on me like that!"

"It wouldn't have been an issue if you had just... gone somewhere instead of standing in the open like a moron! It's only _sensible_ for a newlywed couple like those two to go on a honeymoon somewhere! Costa del Sol is only the _most_ popular tourist city in the world! All sorts of people come by here, you idiot!"

"Hey, in all fairness, Icicle Inn's also a good spot for honeymoons!" he shot back, his temper rising. "Some people like snowy areas to celebrate the happiest day in their life!"

"Like who?! It's too damned cold up there!"

"I'd like to go there with _my_ wife one day!" he practically shouted at her.

"For that to work, you actually need to _get married_!" she said, an air of finality about her. "Which brings us to why we're here in the first place!"

He opened his mouth to protest, but realized she had effectively backed him into a corner, so he closed it after a while. "...I'll never get married," he finally muttered.

She rolled her eyes. "Stupid punk." She looked at Tifa and Shane's retreating figures. "'Have fun', she says... Hah, like I can with you..." A sudden realization dawned on her. "Oh, no..."

"What?" he said almost weakly.

"She said... she said 'you two have fun'. She doesn't seriously think..." She reviewed the exchange in her mind, and facepalmed. "Ah, shit..."

"What?" he repeated, a little firmer this time.

"How much you want to bet she thinks _we're_ together?" Elena grumbled.

--

"You okay?" Shane asked Tifa. "You've been quiet since we saw Cloud."

"Just wondering to myself..." she said vaguely.

He remained silent.

"What does he see in Elena?" she finally said. "He's with her in Costa del Sol, the number one place for dates and such. She also seemed pretty defensive about something. You don't think..." She shook her head. "But it can't be anything else..."

Shane chuckled. "Tifa, it's no big deal. I myself don't think they're actually 'together', per se. Maybe he's just here on business with her."

"Yeah, you're right." She smiled at the new thought. "There's no way he could fall for a girl like her. She's just not his type, period."

--

"Dammit to hell..." Elena grumbled to herself, sitting down in the nearest chair on the beach. "Dammit... dammit... dammit..."

"Stop damning everything," Cloud groaned, annoyed. "There's no way she thinks we're--"

"Why don't you try reviewing that little exchange in your mind, idiot?!" she seethed, glaring at him. She reclined in the beach chair and watched the waves, trying to ignore the stifling heat of the sun beating down on her, cooking her in her Turk uniform. "And the way she _looked_ at us?! There's no way she _doesn't_ think we're together!"

"And whose fault is that?" he snapped.

"Alright, I'll fess up to that! That was all my bad, so get off my case, dammit!" She clapped both hands over her face and counted backward from ten again. She grumbled incoherently and repeated the countdown innumerous times.

"..." Cloud looked out across the beach, examined the waves rolling over the sand.

"Alright, I _think_ I'm sane again..." Elena mumbled angrily, dropping her hands from her face once more. "Now, let's try and put that behind us for now. Next time I see Tifa, I'll have to explain it out to her that you and I are _not_ together. In the meantime, I have to figure out who I should be hooking you up with."

"Just... forget it." He stood from the chair he was sitting in and took a step toward the water. "This isn't going to work out, Elena. I appreciate what you're trying to do for me--"

"No you don't," she interjected.

"--but it's just not going to work this way," he said, effectively ignoring her. "I can figure it out on my own, so--"

She glared at the back of his head. "Hey, I'm here with you right now because you _can't_ figure it out on your own! Face it, you're _useless_!"

"--go on back to Healin and help Rufus and whoever else actually _deserves _your help," he finished, once again ignoring her. "No good can come of you trying to help me out."

She fought back every urge and many more to stand and slug Cloud in the face, to pound sense into him. "No good can come of _me_ trying to help? No, no good can come of _you_ trying to sort out your life's problems! You've already proven in Junon that you're absolutely useless in this situation, so stop acting like you'll be fine now!"

"...Despite what you said earlier, those sound like the words of someone who cares..." he muttered, sitting down reluctantly.

"Oh, not this again..." She glared at him out the corner of her eye. "I've already said I _don't_ care, and that still holds true. I don't give _half_ a damn what happens to you, but I can't have the hero of the world this depressed when it makes me seem weak."

He remained silent for what seemed to be an eternity. "...Sorry," he finally said.

"You better be."

"Why's that? You doing this for me?" he asked casually.

She shot him a glare of such intensity, he was afraid she would lash out and strangle him. "You take that back," she hissed quietly, balling her hands into fists and unclenching them angrily.

"Alright, alright. I take that back," he sighed. He leaned back in his chair and rested his right forearm against his forehead. "Don't need to give me 'the murderer's glare'..."

"The what?" she asked, her expression softening and slowly contorting to one of confusion.

"Never mind. It just looked like you were getting ready to kill me, that's all."

They sat in silence for a while once more, this one fairly uncomfortable for Elena. "You never really answered me earlier, Cloud. What's your kind of girl like? Blonde? Brunette?" She paused to think about it for a moment. "Brunette."

"Think you've got me figured out, do you?" he said almost snidely.

"Well, let's face it. Both Tifa and Aeris are brunettes, and you went absolutely gaga for both of them." She glared at him. "And no, I don't think I have you figured out." She crossed her arms and looked up to the sky, silently cursing the Turk uniform. "Brunette, eh? Alright, I finally have something to start working with."

"I said, 'don't bother'."

"And I said 'you can't take care of yourself, so I may as well'," she retorted, not even bothering to look at him. "I don't _care_ what you say or think, I'm hooking you up with someone and that's final."

"You couldn't just shoot me instead...?" he muttered.

She ignored this weak comment. "Give me something else to work with here. Brunette, and what else?"

"..."

"Don't make me slap you."

"...What else do you want from me?"

She rolled her eyes and tugged at her collar. "Uh, personality would be a big help. Looks aren't everything, you know. You could meet the sexiest woman in the world, but if she's an absolute bitch, no one would be interested."

"Like you, you mean," he said.

The comment sank into Elena's mind for a while. "...You calling me sexy?" she asked, glaring at him out the corner of her eye.

"I'm calling you a bitch. Don't delude yourself."

"In essence, you still called me 'sexy', Cloud. You can't deny that. I don't know whether to be flattered or disgusted, so I'm going with disgusted as a default." She sighed slowly. "So you prefer someone who's a pretty brunette who's kind and caring, very thoughtful of others. Someone who's willing to help you with anything, even those things you don't want help with."

"...Pretty much."

"You're too damned picky, you know that?" she snapped, looking out over the waves, unbuttoning the topmost button of her uniform. "Argh, I can't stand this heat..."

"Then go back to Healin and leave me alone."

"No chance, bucko. Guess I'll just have to change out of my uniform, then." She stood from the chair and stretched her arms out. "Stay here or something. I'm going to get something else on, something that won't cook me alive."

"...Fine."

She started off for the stairs leading to the rest of town and glanced over her shoulder at Cloud, checking to make sure he wasn't doing anything foolish. Pleased to see he wasn't, she proceeded up the stairs once more.

* * *

_I don't have too, too much to say about this chapter. It basically establishes the role of Tifa, as well as the primary problem Elena and Cloud have to deal with. Neither one wants anyone to think that they're together with the other, which serves only to complicate things for Elena, at least._

_I toyed with the notion of having Tifa's husband be Tseng (at reader's suggestion, I may add), but it would've seen me switching the story all up. Again, I don't know if Cloud and Elena will be together at the end, but I do have a general idea how this will end. Putting Tseng into the story as Tifa's husband would've only served to make me rethink the entire concept, and let's face it, I'm lazy lately._

_So, most of the readers here are familiar with Lizu from Of Crystals Born, my previous story. And lately, I've been enjoying World of Warcraft a lot more. The new expansion has me working feverishly to level Ilyasviel to 68, and since she's only one level away, I've made good progress. However, with the new expansion, the new class of Death Knight became available. I don't know what inspired me to make her a Death Knight, of all things, but Lizu has come to World of Warcraft as a blood elf Death Knight on Terrokar. And, though I think this was completely by coincidence, while I was leveling Lizu through the Death Knight starting quests, I saw another Death Knight whose name very closely resembled Sephiroth (there were a couple repeat letters, don't remember exact location). Oh yes, I busted out laughing at the sheer irony and hilarity of it all. Even though both Lizu and Sephiroth died in Of Crystals Born, there they are, reborn as Death Knights on Azeroth. I hope to have Lizu meet up with this Death Knight Sephiroth once more so I can take a screenshot of the two, not only to prove the point, but also to have that immortalization of the two forever. Or at least, until something creams my computer's memory. Yeah, time to get an external hard drive, methinks..._

_Next chapter, Elena tries hooking Cloud up with the first girl who seems to match his type. And while Cloud tries to make the best of it, why does his matchmaker seem so intent on not answering her phone? Could Elena be hiding something from him?_

_...Yeah, that summary's not too good, I'll admit it. The next chapter will make more sense to read all the way through than the description, though, I'm sure. I hope. I don't know. I'm tired, leave me alone! *dozes off at computer and starts snoring* Oh yeah, work wasn't exactly the best experience today, either. My day's just been off since 6 this morning... *continues snoring* -Spiritslayer  
_


	3. First Trial

Time seemed to drag on for Cloud in Costa del Sol, since he was more or less there against his will. And yet, for all his efforts to leave, Elena would stop him effortlessly along the way.

"When will you realize I don't need to be helped?" he asked for what seemed like the thousandth time since they had arrived.

"When will you realize I'm not leaving you be?" she sighed, not only annoyed with his attempts to abandon her in Costa del Sol, but also fed up with him in general.

He settled for glaring at her, not daring to answer the question set before him.

"Thought so. So just be quiet, Chocobohead. I'll be out of your feathers soon enough, long as I can find you someone you stay with."

His glare intensified, and she smirked inwardly, knowing she had pushed a button. "My 'feathers'? What the hell's that supposed to mean?"

"If I need to spell it out for you, you're just slow." She relaxed in the beach chair she had occupied the evening before, glad to be rid of the Turk uniform. She gave a small, subconscious tug on the collar of her white t-shirt, stretching her legs out in her pair of jeans. She gave an outward smirk, which was followed by "Wark."

He shook his head and practically threw himself back into his beach chair. He tried to get comfortable, but couldn't. He stood and took a few steps toward the water, the sand shifting slightly under his feet.

"So, I _think_ I found someone you might like," she began.

"No."

She frowned and sat up a little in her chair. "Wait, what do you mean, 'no'? You haven't even _seen _the girl yet!"

"..." He cast a sideways glance at her and gave his head a small shake. "Just stop, Elena."

"Hmph. And here she was, eager to meet you..." She crossed her arms and reclined again. "Fine, make me out to be a liar..."

"Glad we've reached that agreement."

She stood and moved quickly toward him, her sandals faintly crunching on the sand. "No you don't," she growled, gripping his shoulder tight. "You'll at least _meet _this girl. Don't you want to be _rid _of me? By refusing to meet with her, you're saying you don't mind my company." She grinned devilishly. "Aw, I'm flattered..."

"...Where am I to meet her, and when?" He turned his head to glare at her, hoping it would be enough to get her to let go.

"Party pooper..." she said teasingly. "Anyway, it was agreed upon that you'd meet the brunette Rose at the cafe at dusk."

"Noted. I've still got time." He looked down at her hand. "Any chance you'll let go of me?"

"Hm... if I do that, you might try running away from Costa del Sol... Who knows what that'd do to Rose..."

He rested his hand upon hers, and at this, her eyes widened, then narrowed. "Last chance," he said, a tone of warning in his voice.

"No, _you_ remove your hand from _mine_."

His fingers curled around hers quickly, scrunching them together and catching the Turk off guard. She gave a small wince, and glared at him. "It wouldn't have been an issue in the first place if you didn't touch me first," he said simply, giving her hand a rather violent toss down from his shoulder.

"Prick..." she murmured, flexing her fingers slightly. "So, I _guess_ I can leave you be for a while. Don't try to run from town, Cloud, because I'll know if you do try. You try it, you won't wake up for a while. Capiche?"

"And where is my 'matchmaker' off to?" he asked reluctantly, pouring as much sarcasm into the word 'matchmaker' as he could.

"Anywhere away from you. I don't know about you, but it's easy to get depressed and aggravated around you. Maybe you don't notice because you're always depressed and aggravated, I dunno." She looked back at him, eyes still narrowed. "What about you? I still don't want Tifa and Shane to run into you again, just because we both know what you might try if you do see them again."

"I'll think of something," he muttered. "And on the topic of Tifa, did you clear that up with her?"

"Haven't seen her since then. Don't worry your little, feathered head. I'll take care of that."

As she walked up the steps to the rest of the town, Cloud slowly pieced the 'feathers' taunts and the 'wark' she had uttered earlier together with his nickname of 'Chocobohead'. He glared at the back of her retreating figure. "Bitch..." he muttered.

--

Elena's phone began ringing, catching the Turk off guard momentarily. She glanced over at Cloud and the brunette sitting with him for a moment, then turned her attention to the phone. She examined the number and groaned. _Reno. Why's he bugging me?_ she thought bitterly, choosing to let it ring until Reno gave up. She then tossed it carelessly upon the table before her.

She sighed softly, a soft wind blowing through her blonde hair. She turned her attention back to Cloud and Rose, curious to see just how successful this pairing was. She slowly wiggled her toes in her sandals, enjoying the dusky atmosphere of Costa del Sol.

"S'cuse me," she heard from her left side.

She glanced over at the person who addressed her and gave a small smile. "Can I help you?" she asked, turning her attention back to Cloud.

"Min' if I buy ya a drink?" the man said, almost a bit too eagerly.

"Mm... I'm not big on drinking," she said, knowing it to be the full truth. "Besides, I'm taken."

"Oh, ya are?" he said, his words seeming to slur. He followed her eyes to Cloud and snorted. "Tha' him?"

Elena fought every urge to strike the man for even suggesting it. "No. Just making sure my... friend doesn't run away."

"Why would he run from Rosie?" the man asked gruffly, scratching the back of his head. "Sweetest thing ever seen, 'cept when you annoy her."

Elena froze for a moment. _Chocobohead annoys me easily... And if what this guy says is true..._ "What happens when Rose gets annoyed?" she ventured cautiously.

The man didn't reply, and instead looked at Elena's phone, which had started ringing once more. "You not gonna answer it?" he said, a slight tone of surprise in his voice.

"Don't want to talk to him right now. He's annoying, to say the least." She checked her caller ID and saw that it was, as she suspected, Reno.

The man then proceeded to take up Elena's phone and open it, and before she could protest, answered it with "Leave the poor girl alone. She's sick and tired of you, punk, so stop calling her!" He then proceeded to hang up the phone and set it down. "Don' worry about it," he said, as though expecting to be thanked.

"Uh... that wasn't really necessary..." she said slowly, the gravity of it hitting her. "In fact, I... think you were better off not answering it..."

"Why's that?"

"He's... well, he's not one to anger. He's an aggressive fighter, and if he gets annoyed or angry..." She gave a small whistle. "Hoo boy, watch out. He'll usually hit you if you annoyed him. Piss him off, though... Don't expect to wake up for a while."

"Huh. Sounds kinda like Rosie, actually. Difference is her fighting style, I guess. See, she..."

Elena wasn't listening as the man went on to describe how Rose fought. To her, that was all she needed to hear, and she suddenly knew she and Cloud wouldn't work out so well after all. She snatched up her phone, which was ringing once again, and ignored it, pocketing it before standing from her seat.

"Hey, where ya goin'?" the man called after her.

"Bathroom," she said, walking toward Cloud and Rose without a second glance at the man.

She slowed down as she got nearer, and could hear Rose laughing. _It... can't be that bad..._ she thought, lingering next to another couple's table for a while. She examined Cloud's face for some hint of action or reaction, and she detected none. "So he didn't crack a joke...?" she murmured.

"Elena?" she heard from her right side. "Is that you?"

She didn't register the voice, and instead walked toward Cloud again. "Oy, Cloud!" she said.

The blonde swordsman looked over at Elena. "What?" he said, a small sigh escaping him. Was she imagining things, or did his sigh sound... relieved?

"Something came up. Sorry to ruin your evening like this, but we gotta get moving." She looked at Rose and gave an apologetic look. "Maybe we'll see you again sometime?"

Rose's eyes were narrowed slightly, but she gave a nod. "If it's urgent, then I can manage." She looked back to Cloud and gave a wink and a grin. "I'll see you later, Cloud."

"Sure," he said, standing and following Elena.

She waited until she was a good distance from the cafe before turning to face Cloud once more. "So, what'd you think?" she asked, attempting to sound as casual as possible. _It's not like I just interrupted a date I set up, after all..._ she thought.

"...How long were you watching us?" he asked, masking all emotions but annoyance.

"Oh, shut up. I got some background on Rose from some guy who tried to buy me a drink. She's apparently really nice, but she's also a skilled fighter. Rile her up, and you're in significant danger."

"...And?"

"Who does that sound like to you, Cloud?" she asked, wondering if he'd make the connection. "Sounds to me like someone I know..."

"...You pulled me from Rose just because she's a little like Yuffie?" he sighed.

_He don't got it._ "No, not quite Yuffie."

"I think it could work between the two of us, I just need to work on it a little with her." He took a step toward the cafe, turning slightly. "Unless there's something I don't know about her..."

Elena sighed. "Alright, I'll put it in perspective for you. Suppose you and Reno were to start hanging out, all buddy-buddy. Don't look at me like that," she added, frowning as he glared at her for suggesting it. "Think about it; could you stand him?"

"Probably not, mainly because he's just an absolute dick."

Elena's phone began ringing again, and she ignored it. "He's not so bad once you get to know him. He may _act_ like a dick, but he's really quite nice."

"What's this got to do with--"

"Reno and Rose are fairly similar, Cloud! Put the signs together already!" she finally said. "Think about it for a moment, but don't hurt yourself!"

He opened his mouth to protest this, but slowly pieced the similarities he had apparently noticed between the two. His mouth formed a small 'o' and he looked Elena square in the eyes. "Wow, you're right for once."

"See? I told you. I saved you from what could've turned into a distaster, so-- Hey! I've been right plenty of times before!" she exclaimed, noting the insult. "I was right in my guess that you like brunettes, wasn't I?!"

He rolled his eyes. "Hey, Elena."

"What?!" she said, still affronted by the insult.

"...I'll be honest, it wasn't going so well. She was... well, have you heard of what happened two years and four months ago? Down in Sector 6?"

"Uh... I think so...?"

"It involved Don Corneo."

She recalled her own incident with the Don and gave a small growl. "I remember that bastard, all right..."

"I'm a little surprised you didn't hear about what happened down in Sector 6."

"About you crossdressing to save Tifa, you mean? Yeah, it was the talk of Shinra Headquarters for a little while. Why?"

"She... well, she seemed to enjoy recalling that memory, of all things. Had no reservations at degrading me and laughing all the same. It was... depressing to be reminded of that..." He shook his head. "Anyway... thanks for getting me out of that."

"Nah, don't worry about it. She wasn't right for you, especially if you and Reno don't get along. And yeah, it puts me back at square one in the search for a girl for you, but I'll manage somewhere." She sighed. "Thought I could finally leave you alone, too..."

"Still can," he offered. His tone, though, suggested otherwise.

"...You're actually all for this now, aren't you?" she asked.

"Well... I was iffy about it before, but now I see you actually _do_ mean well. Even if it's to 'clear the stain it leaves on your name'," he added, cutting off her protest. "So... I might kick myself for this later, but go ahead and do what you need to do to make this work."

She stood there for a while, examining his eyes. The Mako-touched eyes gleamed slightly in the setting sun, and she tried reading them, to make sure he was actually serious. _Why can't I concentrate now...?_ she thought. She eventually closed her eyes and chuckled, donning a smirk. "Not like you had a choice in the matter anyway," she said. "Was still going to haunt you till someone stuck on you, even if you didn't want me to."

"True." He glanced back toward the cafe and facepalmed. "Ah, crap..."

"What?"

"...I just left Rose with the check..." he muttered.

Elena felt an amused grin crawl to her face, and she began laughing.

He looked at her like she was crazy, but eventually felt the contagion known as 'laughter' seize him and he, in time, joined her.

* * *

_...I'm feeling out of it, so I'll make this rant as short as I can._

_As though I'm not busy enough with this story, I've got another one I started a while back, but left for 'dead', as it were. Recently, however, I've done a self-review of the first chapter, and I think it'll work nicely for a new story. I don't feel like attempting two stories at once, so that'll be next._

_And on that note, I have a plan involving Hiding Secrets. Since I don't know what to do with it, I could very well leave that up to the readers/reviewers. I put the idea out there in one of my ANs in Of Crystals Born, and while Hiding Secrets wasn't the story I planned on doing it with, it could certainly work. And granted, it won't be a series of one-shots, but it could certainly be something different. So, with that in mind, if you've read the first two chapters of Hiding Secrets, let me know where you want to see it go! I'll take all suggestions into consideration and work all of them into the story that is Hiding Secrets. Once I feel as though you, the readers, have wound it down nicely, I'll end the story with my planned ending. So, let me know if you've read it and want a say in how it turns out!_

_I think it's safe to say that the next story I'm planning could very well be the one that involves all five OCs I outlined in the Of Crystals Born ANs. Expect to see the four OCs I outlined, expect to see Manna's true OC, and expect to see the darker side that was to be Dmitri Aeon. That's all I'm going to say for now._

_Next chapter, Elena's attempts to find another likely match for Cloud are strained by something nagging the back of her mind. Is it what Reno said to her when she finally answered the phone in her room? Or is it something Cloud says or does when he notes something amiss with his 'matchmaker'? -Spiritslayer  
_


	4. Analysis

Elena gave herself a once-over in the mirror before her as dawn slipped over Costa del Sol. She started fussing with her hair and reviewed the conversation she had held with Reno via phone the night prior.

_"Reno," came his greeting._

_"It's me. Sorry about earlier," she began, but she was soon cut off._

_"What, about that guy telling me what he told me? How you're 'sick and tired' of me? Nah, I'm not holding that against you." The tone in his voice was obviously dripping with sarcasm, however._

_"If it makes you feel any better, I didn't know the guy, and I told him NOT to answer my phone! He did anyway!"_

_"So you're letting perfect strangers answer your phone for you now, eh? Weird; you won't let me so much as touch your phone."_

_She sighed and gave her head a defeated shake. "Forget it for now. What'd you call for earlier?"_

_"Wanted to know what you were up to. Figured if you were up to nothing, we could hang out?"_

_"Please, Reno. We've never hung out before, and we both know why. As it is, though, I'm in Costa del Sol right now."_

_"Taking a vacation?"_

_"Mm, kinda, kinda not."_

_"...What's that supposed to mean?" he finally asked, obviously stumped._

_"I'm... helping Chocobohead with something," she replied._

_"Wait... You're in Costa del Sol with Chocobohead right now? Uh, at risk of sounding like I'm over-defensive of you... What the fuck? Did he drag you along?"_

_She wondered how best to word this to her colleague. "Not quite. I sorta kinda dragged him along. See, I'm--"_

_She heard him whistle, and groaned softly. "Oh man, this is rich. You and Chocobohead together? Who'd've thunk it?"_

_"Reno--"_

_"Hey, whatever. Congrats on landing yourself the biggest, most selfish chocobo ever, Laney. Guess you two want time together, huh?"_

_She started to protest, but he hung up on her. She pulled the phone from her ear and glared at it for a moment, then closed it and tossed it rather violently on the mattress of her bed. "Stupid prick..." she muttered, flopping backward onto her bed._

She finished with her hair and let a drawn-out sigh escape her. "Well, that makes _two_ people who think Cloud and I are together..." She took to drumming her fingers on the dresser below the mirror, reflecting on everything she had said and done since she had arrived. _Granted, Tifa thinking we're together was my bad. But Reno's just stubborn and hates to be told he's wrong. But have I done anything to make other people around us believe it too...?_ She thought briefly of the moment in which she had placed her hand upon his shoulder and dismissed that, as he had forcefully removed her hand from his shoulder at that moment.

"Screw it," she muttered, giving the dresser a gentle pound with both hands. "Just need to hook Chocobohead up with someone and be on my way, then." She looked outside the window and noted the early morning weather, then looked in the mirror. Her eyes skimmed the white sleeveless shirt she was wearing, then flicked to the light blue jeans she was wearing. "Not like I'm dressing to impress," she decided. A sudden thought hit her mind, and she looked to her door. "But he probably should." She opened the door and stepped outside her room, proceeding to Cloud's room.

"Yo, Cloud!" she said, throwing the door open without any other warning. "We need to..." She faltered, and felt her face burn and eyes widen as she looked inside.

She had just inadvertantly seen Cloud Strife in nothing but boxers.

He turned to glare at her, not even bothering to cover up; he figured there was no point. "Get. OUT!" he shouted, grasping the hilt of the sword he had since taken to leaving in the hotel room. "NOW!"

She complied instantly and shut the door, leaning her back against it, the image burning vividly in her mind. "Not how I wanted to start my day..." she said, eyes still wide.

A few minutes later, the door clicked behind her, and she moved away from the door as it opened behind her. She was now facing a fully clothed Cloud, though the image of earlier was still at the front of her mind. "Good morning," she finally said, eager to break the tension.

"Don't you knock?" he said furiously, keeping his voice down.

"Figured you'd still be in bed, to be honest." She shook her head and tried rubbing her eyes. All this did was make the image more visible behind her eyelids. "That will forever scar my memory..." she muttered.

He rolled his eyes. "What was so important that you had to barge in on me while I was getting dressed?"

"Uh..." She fought to recall what it was, and looked down at the floor for a moment. "Oh, right. You can't expect to find a decent girl wearing that get-up all the time. You need a new look, Cloud, so you'll want to work on that today."

"_That's_ what was so pressing?" he said, glaring at her. "Seriously?"

She gave her eyes another rub and sighed. "Well, we know it's true." She blinked a few times and resigned herself to the fate bestowed upon her. "Great, can't get rid of that image now..."

"You're not exactly a looker yourself, Elena."

"I'm not trying to impress anyone, Chocobohead. There's the key difference." She looked away from him pointedly. "Well, if you're ready to go, it's time to get this day started."

--

He had since been gone for at least a couple hours at Elena's behest to shop for at least two different outfits to wear, and she had since flopped lazily into the beach chair she had occupied a couple days straight. She rested her forearm across her eyes and let a long sigh escape her. "Still can't get that out of my mind..." she muttered to herself. She dropped her arm and looked around the beach momentarily, looking at the other people on the beach.

There weren't many people on the beach that early in the morning, but there were definitely a few people. She noted, with much amusement, one man whose beer belly stuck out like a sore thumb. She watched as he walked into the waters and turned onto his back, allowing himself to float on the water, carefree. She pondered the idea of swimming at some point while she was here, however briefly it may be.

_"You and Chocobohead together? Who'd've thunk it?"_ She let Reno's words echo in her mind for a while, then shut it out. _No way. I mean, sure, Cloud and I get along just a little better than when I first pitched the idea of hooking him up, but we're definitely not interested in one another..._ She looked out over the waters. _Least, I'm not. And as far as he goes, I'd be amazed if he felt that way..._

A shriek sounded from somewhere behind her, making her jump. She turned quickly to face the source and let a relieved sigh escape her as laughter followed. _Just some kid surprised at the tickling antics of their parent._ She gave her head a small shake, as though clearing out the thoughts cluttering her mind. _Nah, I'm overthinking things. He's not interested, I'm not interested. Simple as that, nothing to worry about. Time to think about something else now._

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stray her mind from what Reno had said and what Tifa had undoubtedly suspected. _Alright. Rose wasn't his type, but she was close, I think. So if not her, then who...?_

She never heard Cloud come up behind her, and jumped when she heard him say "Elena."

"By the gods, Cloud! Warn a girl next time!" she exclaimed, turning her head to face him, an annoyed look on her face. "Can't you at least do _that_ much for me?"

"Bite my head off, will you... Even though this was nothing compared to earlier..."

Her mind flashed the image once more, and she subsided any argument. "...Well? How'd it turn out?"

He held up his hands. Both were empty.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You seriously bought nothing?"

"Didn't think I needed it. Neither did the woman who helped me out while I was there." He took up the beach chair that he had occupied for the last two days. "She said I was fine with navy blue like this and black pants. The navy brings out the blue in my eyes, even if they're touched by Mako. Least, that's what she said."

"..." Elena looked at him, as though to find some fault with the argument now presented before her. It wasn't until she looked up to his eyes that she realized that indeed, navy blue did bring out the blue in his eyes.

"...You okay, Elena?" He fixed his eyes upon her, a look of mixed concern and amusement on his face. "You just stopped breathing."

"Oh, shut up," she said, looking away, realizing he held a point. _He's right, I did. But why? It's not like... But could it have been...?_

"I rendered you breathless? Wow, never thought it possible," Cloud mused.

_Shit, he's got it head on. _"Don't get full of yourself, Chocobohead. Remember, you're trying to impress people. That just means it works in your favor." She looked out over the waves and let her eyes wander to two young children starting on a sand castle. "Incidentally, I haven't found anyone else for you to try."

"That right?" He sighed. "So I'm stuck here until someone for me turns up, huh?"

"Pretty much. Oh, don't give me that tone," she added, noting the resignation in his tone. "I'm stuck here with you as well. How do you think _I _feel?"

They sat in silence for a while, each lost in their own thoughts. Elena was wondering who would work best for Cloud, Cloud was wondering when he'd be free of Costa del Sol and Elena.

"...Suppose we tried someone other than a brunette," she finally said, breaking the silence between them. "Would you be up for trying it? Actually, no. You don't get any say in this matter. I'll see where I can go with someone who's not a brunette."

"Fine."

She looked over at him. "With that in mind, I'm off to get something to eat. Missed breakfast, and lunch is coming up on us fast here." She stood and slid her feet into her sandals. "Looks like you need a pick-me-up as well. You coming or staying here?"

He gave her a suspicious look, but ultimately let it slide. "Now that you mention it, I _am_ fairly hungry as well." He planted his feet on the sand and regarded her momentarily. "The cafe?"

"Sure." The two set off for the steps leading to what Elena had since dubbed 'Costa del Sol proper'.

--

"So," she said simply, looking down toward the beach as they waited for their food.

"What's up?" he asked her.

"If not a brunette, who would you like to see yourself next to? Remember, Tifa and Aeris are off-limits."

He snorted at the comment. "Like I forgot that." He leaned back slightly in his chair and closed his eyes. "...Black hair, possibly."

"Alright, now I have something else to work with..."

"...Elena, something's bugging you." He opened his eyes and met hers, examined them. "I've been stuck with you for the last two days, and I've never seen you like this."

"Not your business," she said matter-of-factly.

"Not my business, least not until it starts to affect your ability to match me up with someone. Remember, you said earlier that we're both pretty much stuck here."

She sighed and tore her gaze from the beach to look at him. "Fine, you got me there. It's just..." She wondered how best to word it. "...Reno thinks we're together as well."

"Oh, for the greater love of..." Cloud smacked his forehead with his palm. "What in hell did you say to him to make him think that?"

"That I dragged you along to Costa del Sol. He didn't give me a chance to say _why_ I dragged you here, though, and you know how stubborn he gets."

"Why'd you even bother? Dd you really _need_ to tell him you dragged me along?"

She opened her mouth to respond, but felt it slip closed. "Not really... Should've just let him think I was on vacation here..."

He looked ready to smack her upside the head. "If you don't want people thinking we're together, don't say things that could work _against_ that!" he finally said, crossing his arms. "And you haven't had a chance to tell Tifa yet, have you?"

"Have _you_ tried looking for one person out of all Costa del Sol? It's difficult, you know. Haven't seen her since day before last, same time you saw her."

Silence settled between them for a moment.

"Both counts have been your fault, you know," he finally said, giving the waitress a smile as their food came.

"Tell me something I _don't _know," Elena muttered, nodding her head to the waitress before she grasped the edge of her plate. "And here I thought I had finally gotten over talking too much..."

"Yeah, you wish." Cloud picked up the fork before him and began eating the tilapia before him.

She looked at him, tempted to say something in response, but settled for eating instead. She gave her salmon a rather savage stab with her fork.

He noted this and gave a small sigh. "Sorry if I said anything that, well... pissed you off."

"..." She mulled this over in her mind for a moment, then poked her fish for a moment. "...Nah, it's fine. The truth hurts sometimes, but hey, whatever. Sometimes, the truth needs to be heard. I think it's safe to say this is one of those times."

"And you know what that means, right?"

"Stop blabbing?"

He grinned. "There you go." He resumed eating.

"...You say that like it's so easy to do. The thing is, though, that I've always been really talkative, and it's tough for me to supress it. Kind of like your constant infatuation with Tifa, in a way, even though she's married."

He narrowed his eyes at her. "Who said I was--"

"Stop trying to hide it, Cloud. We both know it's the truth. My point is that there are some things people can't control about themselves. For me, it's being too talkative sometimes. It's different for each person you see, but there's always going to be that one thing they have absolutely no control over. It's just part of who they are, and you learn to accept it over time."

Her words seemed to render them both silent for the duration of their lunch, and neither of them said a word until Elena had paid for their lunch.

"Elena."

"Yo."

"I know you don't want me to say it, but we both know I'll never stop it all the same. Thank you."

She gave a small smile. "Nah, it's fine. It's just something else about you that you have no control over; I've since learned to accept that.

He chuckled. "And you being too talkative isn't too bad, either. Even _if_ it makes people think the wrong thing about us."

"Careful, now. Saying things like that makes it sound like you don't mind if people think we're together." She grinned.

"Of course I mind that!" he retorted, giving her a small glare. "We're not, and it'll never happen, so there's no point letting people believe otherwise!"

"We agree for once," she mused, standing. "Well, this should be easier now. I feel loads better now that I've cleared my mind." She regarded the swordsman before her for a moment. "Hey, thanks."

He gave her a quizzical look. "For what?"

She grinned. "If you don't know why I'm thanking you, I guess I'll let you flop around hopelessly for a while."

* * *

_The snow is piling up, and I walked through it for an hour. My eyes are still adjusting slightly, and I came indoors about 15 minutes ago. Gotta love winter._

_My creativity has hit a peak, which is good. The BAD thing is that I've picked up Warcraft III and the expansion. The expansion has a map editor that lets me make my own maps. Guess where most of my creativity's gone as of late? Yeah, it's definitely cut into my writing, not to mention my sleep. I've been pulling all-nighters recently, which is not good... My custom map better be worth the lost sleep, or I'm going to be so ticked... For those of you who play World of Warcraft, my custom map is inspired by the battle between the Kirin Tor of Dalaran and the Blue Dragonflight. Name of the map is Dalaran Overrun. You probably got it from there.  
_

_That's not to say I haven't started chapter 5. It's not much right now, but I HAVE started it. I know what the basis of it will be, as the 'Next chapter' bit will prove. I also know what chapter 6 is going to be about, but I'll keep that quiet for now._

_Let's see... oh, I've hit the level cap in World of Warcraft! Ilyasviel is now level 80! Of course, now the journey's just begun... I have much to do now that I've hit 80, and form an arena team with a guildmate is one of many things to do. The road is long, but the possibilities are infinite._

_Still awaiting recommendations for where to take Hiding Secrets. The next chapter's been far overdue, and that means it's basically out of my hands at this point... Which is sad, considering I'm the author...  
_

_I'll try and keep this brief by ending it with..._

_Next chapter, Elena's luck finding someone for Cloud goes downhill. And yet, after a swim and some contemplation, she realizes that Cloud seems to have an interest of his own, one that ISN'T Tifa... -Spiritslayer  
_


	5. The First Speed Bump

Evening had set upon Costa del Sol, and Elena wanted nothing more than to take it easy. The evening air enticed her, and the waters of the beach seemed to beckon her.

It was times like this she hated Cloud most, though. Especially when he seemed to do things to spite her.

"So..." she began slowly, facepalming. "Do I even want to know...?"

Cloud opened his mouth to speak, but thought better of it and closed it once more. He instead brought a hand up to touch his right eye.

She glanced at him over the top of her fingers and fought the urge to scream out in frustration. He was sporting a black eye over his right eye, and she had no idea how it happened. "Well, someone beat me to the punch. And yes, pun intended," she added, noting his reaction of an eye roll.

"Can you help me with it?" he sighed, lowering his hand slowly.

She rolled her eyes. "Sure, because I couldn't possibly have anything better to do with my time than baby you every damned step of the way," she replied sarcastically. "Put ice on it, it'll help with the swelling."

He nodded, turning toward the hotel. He took a few steps before he realized she wasn't following. "What about you?"

"I'm taking a day to myself. A day to just say 'screw you, Cloud Strife'. We've been here for nearly a week now; I can't stand watching over you all the time. Why don't _you_ try helping someone who's hopeless? Maybe you'll understand this break."

He once again opened his mouth to speak, but closed it under the intense glare Elena was giving him.

"And you better stay in the hotel if you don't want the match to your right eye," she warned, flexing her fingers menacingly.

She watched with satisfaction as he seemed to cower under her newfound anger and shuffled back to the hotel, hand masking his black eye from view. She turned quickly to face the beach once more and allowed a smile to slip to her face. "Finally, time to myself..." she murmured, walking for the beach.

"...Elena?" an uncertain voice asked from behind her.

Elena had never wanted to punch someone more than that very moment. "If it's not Strife, it's always someone else..." she grumbled, turning to face the speaker. "Can't I just get a break?"

Tifa was standing in front of Elena, blinking momentarily. "Did something happen between you two?" she asked, almost sounding hopeful.

"Nope, not at all. I'm just sick of dealing with his crap."

"So you punch him in the eye?" Tifa asked incredulously.

Elena chuckled darkly. "Oh, I wish. No, someone else beat me to the punch already. Otherwise, I probably would have done so myself, sure."

Tifa went wide-eyed for a moment. "...Poor Cloud. I didn't know he had it so rough with you..." she said quietly.

"He's getting used to it. If I were truly fed up with him, I don't think he'd be _walking_ back to the hotel."

Tifa apparently didn't want to know, because her mouth opened to ask a question and closed just as swiftly, followed by a brief shake of her head.

"Anyway, where's your significant other, Shane?" Elena asked in order to break the silence that was beginning to settle.

"He said he wanted to surprise me with something. A 'little something to remember our honeymoon by', he said. That was just after dinner, and I haven't seen him since..." Tifa let a dreamy look appear on her face. "I wonder what he has planned...?"

"Well, wonderful for you. Just hope you don't have a black eye to remember it by, like I'm being forced to..."

Tifa allowed herself a small giggle. "Sometimes, it's the small things that are most memorable," she said casually.

Elena shrugged. "Sure..."

"So, how'd you and Cloud wind up coming to Costa del Sol together?" Tifa asked suddenly, as though she had just remembered.

"It's personal. I'm just trying to help cure him of a heartache, put simply."

Tifa slowly nodded. "It makes sense. I wondered at first, but if it's working fine for him, then you do what's necessary." Tifa smiled. "I'll wish you luck, then. He's a handful sometimes, but he's never too bad to deal with."

Elena grinned. "So I could tell. Honestly, I'm glad that he got _only_ a black eye. Who knows what else may have happened to him?"

Tifa laughed a little. "True... well, I'll leave you be, Elena. Take care of yourself, as well as Cloud. He's still my friend, and I'd hate if something happened to him."

Elena waved a hand at Tifa. "You worry too much. He's in capable hands, or my name's not Elena."

Tifa simply nodded and waved as she walked toward the cafe once again. "Tell Cloud I said 'hi'!" she called before vanishing from view inside the cafe.

--

Elena never wanted to admit it, especially to guys (namely Reno), but she had always loved swimming. And as she floated in the water, the bikini she had worn under her outfit up till this point, she felt like she was in heaven.

She glanced momentarily at her t-shirt and jeans, making sure that some sick perv hadn't come and gone with her clothing. She had forgotten a towel, but was willing to deal with that problem later. She was just living for the moment at that time.

She thought back momentarily to her run-in with Tifa and considered what was said. _I guess she would've been against me helping him in the first place. She still sees me as a Turk, and therefore an enemy to both her and Cloud. But it sounds like she doesn't believe that anymore,_ she thought to herself.

_In fact, it almost sounds like she's encouraging it. Not that I needed encouragement in the first place._ She grinned a little to herself, turning over in the water and beginning a breaststroke to pass the time. _I don't need to worry about taking care of myself; I do that well enough as it is. But it's not like I'm taking care of him once I find someone for him._

The last thought seemed to to bring her mind to a screeching halt, and she slowly sank in the water, her body frozen as she considered what that meant to her -- and what it likely meant for _Tifa_.

She didn't realize she had sunk underwater until she felt water slowly beginning to fill her mouth. She snapped back to Gaia and broke surface again, spitting out the water and coughing violently.

_No way._ She shook her head and glanced back at the shore, seeing her clothes still there. _It can't be... but I said things that only served to reaffirm her initial thoughts..._

She facepalmed hard. "Oh, no... I didn't tell her _how_ I was helping Cloud..." she grumbled, beginning to swim back to shore quickly. _I need to find Tifa and explain what's going on here, before she convinces herself... but she probably has already. Great..._

She stepped out of the water and grumbled incoherently, picking up her clothes and beginning her walk to the cafe. All Elena knew was that she wanted to find Tifa and explain what was really going on.

She only reached the top of the steps when she saw familiar shoes standing at the top. She followed them up the owner's body begrudgingly to look one Cloud Strife in the eyes. "And what are we doing outside of the hotel, in violation to my order?" she said hotly.

He didn't answer, and it wasn't until she peered into his eyes that she realized he wasn't meeting her gaze. She clenched a fist around her clothes and understood. "Check ME out, will you?" she snarled, pulling her free hand back in a fist and colliding it with his left eye. "And what'd I tell you about giving you the match?!" she added in a furious shout.

He reeled from the sudden impact and staggered uncertainly, looking up into Elena's eyes. "Hey, did you really need to--"

"I warned you! I didn't want to see you outside of the hotel, remember?!" she retorted angrily. "Last I checked, the hotel was over there!" she added, pointing a finger at the building.

"I wanted to ask you something!" he protested.

"It couldn't wait until I returned?!"

Any signs of agrument from Cloud subsided instantly. "...I'm sorry," he finally mumbled.

She sighed defeatedly. "...Whatever. I need to talk to you about something anyway..." She gestured to the beach and began walking down the steps again, headed for the nearest vacant beach chair.

Cloud followed her, taking the chair nearest her. He sat down and rubbed his left eye, sighing. "You didn't have to punch me..." he grumbled.

"Don't you even start. I gave you fair warning well beforehand; you chose to ignore it." She heaved a sigh, trying to relax in the chair. She closed her eyes and listened to the waves washing upon the beach.

"So what's up?" he asked uncertainly.

"...I ran into Tifa earlier. In fact, it was almost immediately after you returned to the hotel."

"So she knows the truth at long last?"

Elena opened her eyes and remained silent.

"...Elena? I don't like this silence..." Cloud began slowly.

"...Let's just say that Tifa _might_ be convinced of her previous thoughts..." Elena ventured carefully.

She heard him facepalm and then groan. She looked over at him briefly and saw that while he had indeed facepalmed hard, he had smacked his hand firmly into both eyes in the process. She grinned a little despite herself. "Careful, Cloud. That kind of thing will only hurt."

"What the hell?! I thought you were going to tell her!" Cloud exclaimed.

"I was! I just hadn't counted on finding her out of the blue like that! It was something far from my mind, Cloud!"

"'Farthest from your mind'?! Aren't you here in Costa del Sol, with me, _trying_ to find me someone to hook up with?! And clearing up a misunderstanding with Tifa is furthest from your mind?!" he shouted angrily.

"Lay off, chocobo burglar! I was a bit more focused on how absolutely stupid you had been just earlier!" she retorted.

His argument died for a moment, then... "'Chocobo burglar'?"

She pointed at his hair, then at the two black eyes he was now sporting.

His mouth formed a small 'o' and he rolled his eyes. "So now she's convinced that we're actually... together?"

"Most likely... she didn't say anything like that, but her words were more than... _supportive_ of it."

Cloud's jaw dropped. "...Wait a second. Tifa's _supporting_ that belief?"

"Certainly seems that way. Why?"

He fell silent, lost in thought. She watched him for a moment, and eventually met his eyes. She watched the Mako infusions seemingly dance as he thought, and wondered if her own eyes did anything like that.

"...Elena? You've stopped breathing again." Cloud frowned a little, looking away from her own eyes. "You've got to stop that..."

She took a deep breath and found, indeed, that she had once again been rendered breathless. "It's just... your eyes. Well, the Mako infusions, anyway... the way they dance when you think, I've never seen that before..."

He met her eyes momentarily once more. "...Elena, maybe it's just time we part ways. I'll manage well enough on my own, and you're only wasting your time trying to help me. Besides, it seems like most anyone we come across thinks we're together..."

Elena froze. "...What?" she said quietly.

"...The owner of the hotel, the waitress we had that afternoon... even Rose thinks so now. Add Tifa, and..."

Elena gently banged her head against the back of the beach chair. "Then it's even more reason to stay. I need to find someone for you so that everyone that _believes _it will see that they're mistaken. If we left now, they'd see the two of us leaving at the same time, and it wouldn't work out so well."

"But--"

"No 'buts', Cloud. Finding you someone is the only way to resolve this quickly."

He sighed and brought the ice pack she hadn't noticed until just now to his right eye first, then his left eye. "...Fine."

She watched for a moment, a small pang of guilt washing over her for punching him. She rose from the chair and walked over to him. "Here," she sighed, taking the ice pack. She gently pressed it against the affected areas of the left eye and shook her head. "Even though I warned you, it doesn't really justify actually _hitting_ you..."

He would have shaken his head if she weren't pressing the ice pack to his eye. "Don't worry about it. I more or less expected it, but I guess I was still surprised regardless."

The two remained in silence for a few moments before it was punctuated by Cloud groaning slightly.

"What's wrong?" she asked quietly.

"This... doesn't exactly help our situation any," he began slowly, indicating her tending to his eye with the ice pack.

She realized what he was talking about and moved his hand forcefully to take the ice pack. She then pulled her hand away from the pack and gave him a small punch.

"OW!" he exclaimed loudly, the pain of the punch jolting through the ice pack to his eye. "What was that for?!"

"Not telling me what caused the black eye on your left eye in the first place. Besides, just because I apologized for the black eye doesn't mean I'm still angry at you." She wheeled around on the sand and picked up her clothes, eventually stalking toward the hotel.

As she walked, she wondered wildly what was coming over her. She would never, in a million years, have _offered_ to do what she had just done for him. She would _never_ have tended to a black eye she would have otherwise enjoyed giving him.

"...What's wrong with me...?" she murmured as she opened the hotel door.

--

Shane chuckled. "Just like a couple."

Tifa sighed. "I had thought they _were_ together, but their words contradict it..."

"And their _actions_ only support our theory." Shane turned to his wife and smiled. "We don't have to worry about it. They might not realize it right now, but they've fallen for each other."

Tifa rolled her eyes. "Then I really feel sorry for Cloud, if that's the case. He doesn't need someone that violent caring for him..."

Shane nodded. "That's very true." He gestured toward the beach. "Shall we?"

Tifa smiled, kissing Shane briefly. "Sure."

* * *

_So... been a long while. I've been stumped recently on where to go with it, and while I'm not 100% crazy about this chapter as the fifth, I think it's still pretty good._

_I've decided where this story will go, now the process is reaching that point. And the ending might surprise those of you who think you know exactly how it's going to end. Will I say what the ending is? Of course not, because that's the suspenseful kind of guy I am._

_The next chapter is going to be a little harder, but I'll get it. No worries, this won't become a dead-end story. I intend to finish it, and then I have another story idea in the works. Again, suspense is my best tool right now, so I'll save any 'spoilers' for the last chapter of this one._

_Next chapter, Elena's never felt so confused before. She's only trying to help Cloud so she can leave Costa del Sol, but why is it so difficult for her to even think of the best way to do that? A little talk with someone she knows only a little only serves to deepen the confusion, but it also opens her eyes simultaneously._

_...Or something like that. I haven't started writing it yet (bad me, BAD!), but it can be expected to be along those lines._

_And in other news, I've fallen pretty far behind... but I'll get back into the swing of things, promise! -Spiritslayer  
_


	6. A Turk's Weakness

"Oh. Hell. No."

Cloud was about to leave the hotel for the day when Elena's voice from the other side of her door. He hesitated for a moment, then crossed to her door slowly, raising a hand to knock on it. "Elena? Everything alright?"

He barely heard her sigh. "Everything's fine, Cloud. Don't worry about it."

"...Are you sure?" He wasn't convinced by her tone, and lingered outside her door for a moment longer.

"Everything's fine, Cloud," she repeated sternly. "Don't worry about it, like I said."

He listened for a few moments and heard hushed talking from her room. He decided she was on her cell phone and decided to leave her be.

He turned to leave the door before he heard her shout out, "What?!"

_Yeah, she's on her phone,_ Cloud thought. He was tempted to ask what was wrong, but decided against it and instead proceeded to leave the hotel.

--

Elena realized she had shouted out and quickly hushed her voice. "Are you _insane_?!" she hissed into her cell phone.

"Some would think so," came the sly response, and she groaned softly as she heard the other person chuckle.

"You know why I call you insane!" she hissed again.

"What? All I said was that you should get back to your boyfriend," drawled Reno's voice mockingly.

"He's _not_ my boyfriend," she said angrily. "How many times will I have to spell that out to you, Reno?"

"Then what is Chocobohead to you?"

She opened her mouth to speak and found herself unsure of how to answer that. "...My friend," she finally answered.

"Huh. Why'd it take you so long to answer?" he asked casually.

"I've never had to answer that before, that's why. And yeah, we _used_ to fight, but we're friends now. I mean, we kinda pick on each other from time to time, but we're ultimately friends."

"Uh huh. I'm convinced." The sarcasm in Reno's voice said otherwise, making Elena sigh.

"Why do you care, though? We're friends, but you've never shown this much concern for me before." She realized what she had said and thought about how terse it sounded.

"I just don't want you making the wrong decisions, that's all. And trust me, hooking up with Chocobohead is a wrong decision."

"I haven't hooked up with him!" she shot hotly.

She envisioned him shrugging with a wacky grin on his face. "Sure, sure. Why deny it that loudly, though? You don't need to shout."

She glared at the phone momentarily before bringing it back to her ear. "Oh, go to hell. You won't listen either way."

"Hey, that stings. I listen, I just joke a lot."

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, sure you do. Your whole life's been one joke, Reno, and you've never once taken anything seriously. You even joke around when you fight."

Silence met her ear, and she slowly realized what she had just said to him.

"...That hurts, Elena. I take plenty seriously, you're just fun to pick on because you get all defensive."

Her heart sank a little, recognizing the tone. It was reserved for those who offended him -- those he would begin forming grudges against. "Reno, I'm sorry..."

"Nah, whatever. You go ahead and hang with your little chocobo, I don't care. If you two are together, just hope it's not a catastrophe. If you aren't, I guess I'll see you when you get back."

She opened her mouth and began to speak, but stopped abruptly when she heard the connection die. Reno had hung up.

She closed the phone and tossed it on her bed, sighing. "Great... now Reno hates me..." she grumbled. She gazed through her window at Costa del Sol, noting the rain clouds that were drifting in.

It had been a few days since Cloud had received his black eyes, and while they were going away, they were still partially visible. And during that time, she had attempted to sort out her thoughts on what had happened the few days prior.

She watched as the first raindrops began falling from the sky and sighed again. "Rain... there goes the day," she muttered to herself.

Knocking on the door snapped her attention to it. "Who is it, and what's up?" she said wearily.

"Elena? You alright...?" Cloud's voice asked from the other side of the door.

"Bored out of my mind." She closed her eyes slowly.

"...Who was that on the phone?" he asked, attempting to let himself in.

She listened to the locked door rattle for a few moments and grinned a little. "Unlike you, Cloud, I care about being walked in on when I'm practically naked." She stood and moved to unlock the door, flopping back on her bed once again.

"Ha ha, very funny." His tone seemed to suggest he had remembered that particular day.

Unfortunately, Elena also recalled that day, and the image of Cloud in his boxers burned at the forefront of her mind once more. "...Why'd I bring it up? Now it's bothering me all over again..." she grumbled.

He tried the door again and seemed genuinely surprised that it opened at all. "You liked it and you know it," Cloud said in a teasing manner.

She rolled her eyes, cracking her knuckles. "Care to repeat that?" she said casually.

"You liked-- wait a second... no, never mind. You were hearing things," he offered meekly.

"I thought so..." She picked up her phone and placed it upon the nightstand next to her bed. "Anyway... I was talking to Reno. He checks up on me every so often. Probably to make sure I haven't lost myself completely from the Turks."

He nodded absentmindedly, gently touching the two black eyes he still sported. "What's he up to...? Wait, when have I started caring how he's doing?" he asked himself, surprised.

"Just now, I guess." She glanced at him for a moment. "You never answered me, you know..."

"Huh?"

"Don't you 'huh' me. I had asked you how you got the first black eye. I know I gave you the second one..."

He sighed. "I got the first one by--"

He was interrupted by Elena giggling suddenly. The words 'chocobo burglar' were barely audible.

"I can hear you, you know," he grumbled.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry... it's just too perfect." She calmed herself down after a few moments. "Okay, I'm good. Keep going."

"...I got the first one by trying my hand at the 'matchmaker' scene. I apparently don't have the hang of it, because I managed to find a girl who was _nice_, but being... 'protected' by a rather rough boyfriend. He did _not_ seem to take kindly to--"

"Well, no shit, Cloud. Guys get defensive when other guys just walk up to their girl and start flirting with her. You've seriously got to think before you act, and be grateful he didn't snap your spine in two in the process."

"...That's not to say he didn't try to," Cloud grumbled under his breath.

"Would've served you right, I guess. It would've learned you a valuable lesson."

"I'll just count my blessings, then, and be grateful he didn't manage to break my back."

Elena nodded slowly. "You do that."

Silence settled amongst them for a moment, each of them lost in their own trains of thought. The rain was starting to hammer on the rooftops, reminding both of them that it was still raining outside.

Then, lightning cracked across the sky, making Elena cry out in surprise.

"What's wrong?!" Cloud asked, suddenly returned to Gaia by her shout.

"Thunderstorms?! Oh, come on! Cut me a freakin' break here!" she protested to no one in particular. "Rain, I can deal with, but come on!"

Cloud had to fight extremely hard not to burst out laughing. "So... Elena, you afraid of thunderstorms?" he asked casually, a grin crossing his face.

"Shut up, Strife! This isn't funny! You have no idea how many missions--"

The thunder sounded, silencing Elena abruptly. She shuddered visibly, and sighed. "...Thunderstorms have ruined many a mission for me because they freak me out that much..."

"It's not that bad," he commented, walking to the window and opening it so the sounds outside are amplified.

"Har har. Close that window before I stick your head through that screen," she warned dangerously.

Lightning flashed once again, making Elena cry out a little softer than before. The thunder followed instantly, the amplified noise making Elena stand and shove Cloud away from the window. She moved to the window and slammed it shut, the window panes rattling a little as she did so. "Prick..."

He continued to grin despite himself. "You're afraid of thunderstorms," he stated.

She gave him a look that seemed to say 'What's it to you?' The thought she vocalized, however, was "Wipe that grin off your face. I have good reason to be--"

Lightning and thunder interrupted her, and Cloud couldn't help but notice she whimpered a little at this one. "...Sorry... I've just never seen this side of you before..." He carefully rested a hand on her shoulder and steered her to the bed.

She looked at him, mildly grateful. "...Thanks," she murmured quietly.

"So... what happened to make you so afraid of thunderstorms? Or is that an 'off-limits' question?" He regarded her slightly trembling form through his Mako-infused eyes.

"It's fine... where to start, though...?" She tried distracting herself by twiddling her thumbs.

A flash of lightning and the rumble of thunder three seconds later snapped her out of any semblance of peace, however, and she shivered a little, hands shooting to her arms.

Cloud watched almost helplessly. "Elena..."

She forced a shiver, rubbing her arms in an effort to warm herself. "...My parents died in a fire caused by lightning. I was saved, but watched as my home burned to nothingness. And all through it, it was a thunderstorm." She stopped rubbing her arms. "Then, there was the day I was outside when the weather was perfectly clear, but, well... weather changes quickly sometimes. So, I had been forced to run through the rain. Never mind the fact that I had almost been soaked to the bone..."

Lightning flashed again, and while she made no visible action in response to it, he could tell it was bothering her. The rumbling thunder seemed to shake her very being.

"...I was struck by lightning in that same storm," she continued. "And while I was trying to recover from it, the thunder seemed to shake the ground below me. It shook the ground, it shook me up... I came down with pneumonia that same day, and, well..." Her voice trailed momentarily.

He was no longer harboring any thoughts of 'This is hilarious,' since his thoughts were now focused on what she must have gone through.

"..._Then_ there was the day that I was doing basic training as a Turk. One of the robots was equipped with a mastered Lightning materia, and somewhere along the way, it malfunctioned. Oh, sure, it managed to blast me with Bolt3 beforehand... but that was when it started to malfunction. I was barely saved from that. I was just fortunate Rude was right nearby, or I'd probably have died that day." She drew her knees closer to her chest and hugged her knees tightly. "So... there you have it. Go ahead, poke fun at me if you want to. This is rather pathetic, I admit..."

Lightning startled her suddenly, and the resulting thunder made her tremble again. "...Dammit..." she mumbled.

Without a word, Cloud sat down next to her and put an arm around her shoulders. "Hey... come on, I'm not going to make fun of you for something like that... at first, it _was_ kind of unexpected, but..."

She shrugged a little. "Some people think it's funny, even despite the reasons behind it... Reno among them."

"Reno's an ass, of course, so it's only natural _he_ pokes fun at it. I'm not going to, though."

She closed her eyes. "...Thanks, Cloud. Seriously... thank you."

A bolt of lightning struck one of the street lamps outside, making Elena cry out in fear. She subconsciously clung to Cloud, her face hidden in his shoulder. The thunder ripped through the air, making her quake fairly violently.

Cloud was fully aware of how this could be interpreted, but the nice guy in him wasn't about to leave Elena alone through the thunderstorm. He simply fixed his arm around her and tried comforting her. "You'll be alright," he said softly.

"...I know, I know..."

He noticed how much she was trembling and closed his eyes. "I'm... here to help," he said, choosing his words carefully.

"...I know... thank you again." Elena tried relaxing, but another flash of lightning saw herself clinging even closer to Cloud.

_This will be a long night,_ Cloud thought to himself. He didn't have the gall to tell her that the storm was expected to last through the night, simply because he didn't want to drag her spirits down further.

--

When Elena woke the next morning, the first thing she noticed was that there was a little weight across her shoulders, and that she was resting on a rather firm pillow. She opened her eyes and looked at her pillow.

It wasn't until the sleepiness that lingered in her vanished entirely that she recognized the 'pillow' as Cloud. She wondered wildly what happened the evening before, and recalled the storm, and that he had comforted her as best he could all through it. _I must have... fallen asleep at some point... and he must have fallen asleep at about the same time..._ She slowly pulled herself away from him and stood, pacing slowly. _Am I really that... comfortable around him? I don't... know..._

Cloud stirred and opened an eye. It took him a while longer to recognize where he was, and what must have happened. He sat up suddenly, eyes wide. "Elena! I swear, I didn't think that would--"

She shook her head, cutting him off. "I don't think either of us were expecting that... 'sides, you were helping me through the storm, so... I mean, it's not a habit you should get into, by all means, but still..."

He understood what she was trying to say. "You're alright now, of course...?"

She nodded slowly. "Mhm. I just hope that there's not another storm for as long as we're here... I don't want to go through that again. Storms always scare me, but you saw that..."

"Yeah." He stood and made a move for the door. "I'll just leave you be, then..."

"Cloud." She turned to face him.

He turned his head to face her, questioning eyes upon her.

"Thanks again for helping me through last night..."

"No problem. It's the least I can do to repay what you've been doing for me."

"You've still got a ways to go on that, Cloud." A grin started to appear on her face. "Also, last night doesn't leave the hotel. AT ALL."

He chuckled. "Of course. You didn't have to tell me that part."

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right. You'd use that against me if you got the chance, and you know it."

"Well, the thought never crossed my mind until now..." he began casually.

He watched her grab her pillow and opened the door, stepping into the hallway and closing the door quickly. He heard the pillow thump faintly against the door.

"Strife, you _better_ not tell anyone!" she called through the door.

He took that moment to just remain quiet and walk into his own room, grinning as he did so.

* * *

_I don't have a whole lot to say about this chapter. I'm not ashamed of it, by any means; in fact, I think this chapter's a defining one. I'm just feeling lazy, and I'm not sure what to put in the Author's Note this time._

_Life's been just kind of... blah. Nothing special lately. I'm just starting to live day by day, and it's kind of dull sometimes. I'm even cutting back on WoW, which is a small shock even to myself. I'm sure my life will pick back up in time, I'm just weary._

_It doesn't mean it'll interfere with this story. I'll keep working on it (albeit at a slightly slow pace, as you've no doubt noticed), and it WILL be finished._

_Now... normally, I do a 'Next chapter preview', but considering this one's borderline matching the last description, I'll just leave it open-ended this time. All I'll say is that it'll develop the story a little bit more... I think._

_Meh... I'll get back to you on that come next chapter. Very short Author's Note this time... well then, until next we meet. -Spiritslayer  
_


	7. A Tale of Mako

The next few days passed by with no real eventful occurrences. Cloud and Elena had just spent time talking about various aspects of their life with each other, be it in the hotel, at the beach, or at the cafe as they had taken to more and more lately.

Elena watched as Cloud made his order at the cafe, and trailed the waitress with her eyes for a moment before looking back at Cloud, a grin donning her features. "Slowpoke."

He shrugged. "So what? You ordered too fast. You've got to answer to your tastes for the day--"

"Yeah, I did. My tastes were for pasta today. Not that difficult," she said simply, crossing her arms. "Whereas you, on the other hand, struggled for an hour--"

"Five minutes," he corrected with a small mutter.

"--deciding what you wanted," she continued, as though he hadn't interrupted her. "And in the end, it's fish. Again."

He grinned a little. "What can I say? The fish is good."

Elena sighed, leaning back in her chair, tugging at the collar of her white sleeveless top. "Everything here's good. You'd know that if you strayed from fish for a while."

"Says the woman who eats the pasta all the time," he replied with a small, playful smirk.

"Excuse me, I had salmon one night," she huffed in protest.

"Yeah, _one night_," he emphasized with the same playful smirk. "The rest of the time, it's been pasta."

She shrugged, knowing that he had her cornered there. "Fine, fine. I've only had pasta, with the exception of the salmon one night--"

He grinned triumphantly.

"--that you're aware of," she finished, a small smirk playing at her mouth.

"...When have you ever come here alone?" he asked, clueless.

"Plenty of times. You're just too lazy sometimes."

He didn't look like he fully believed her, which was unfortunate for her; she was lying to him, but wanted to see how he reacted. This wasn't really the reaction she was looking for.

"...You sure?" he finally asked, confirming her suspicions.

_He isn't buying it, but I'll push it one more time..._ "Oh yeah, plenty of times."

He regarded her carefully before nodding slowly. "Alright... never mind, then. I was wrong."

She froze in place, a bewildered expression on her face. _He... he... BELIEVED me?!_

A grin cracked his features, and he started to chuckle. "Hah, I knew you were lying. You're a bit too easy to read, Elena."

Her shocked expression became replaced by one of embarassment. "...Dammit, I've been outwitted by a chocobo," she grumbled, closing her eyes slowly. "That's a story to tell..."

He grinned at her once more, uttering a small 'wark'. "So you've only had pasta and salmon once?"

She nodded slowly. "Admittedly, yes. But I'm sure everything else here is good."

"Next time we're here, we both try something other than our favorite thing. For me, anything but fish. For you, anything but pasta."

She narrowed her eyes at him a little. "...'Next time we're here'? You make it sound like we do this routinely."

"We do, sort of. Within the last two weeks, we've been here... what, ten days of the fourteen? You can't deny we've made a small habit of this..."

She resigned herself to this fact. "True... fine, we'll try something new next time, but you're footing the bill."

"Fair's fair."

Silence settled between them for the time being. She looked around for a while, seemingly uninterested in their surroundings. She looked back at Cloud, who was also looking around. She examined the area around his eyes, noted how the black eyes he had been sporting were now gone. Then, her eyes seemed to move on their own to meet his. While he was still looking elsewhere, she could still see his eyes clearly, the Mako infusions seemingly captivating her.

She wondered momentarily how he had arrived at the decision to become a SOLDIER. She didn't really know, and realized she had a sudden urge to know.

"...Elena, breathe already," he sighed, snapping her train of thought. "And stop staring at me; it creeps me out."

She blinked and took a deep breath. "Sorry, just..." Her voice trailed, and she looked away slowly.

"...Something on your mind?" he asked her finally, seemingly noticing her discomfort.

She shrugged. "Not really, just thinking."

He let it slide, and silence settled between them again.

"...Cloud, can I ask you something?"

He looked over at her, nodding. "Go ahead."

"I mean, if it's too personal, you don't have to answer..." she said, stalling for the moment.

"Ask."

"...Why'd you join SOLDIER?"

He looked taken completely aback by her question. "Eh... why'd I join SOLDIER?"

She nodded slowly, her eyes meeting his again.

"...The answer's probably predictable to you..." he grumbled.

"To impress Tifa?" she offered.

He nodded. "Transparent, right...?"

"Kinda. But... why back then? Why did you want to impress her back then?"

"Well... one day, she and I were alone on a trip through Mount Nibel. I don't remember the finer points... but in the end, she wound up hurt, and I was blamed for hurting her. It was partly understandable. I mean, I _was_ there and I _could_ have helped her... but I guess, somewhere along the way, I lost sight of her, and she wound up hurt."

"You weren't paying enough attention, in other words," she added briefly.

"Yeah, more or less. After she was hurt, though... I swore I'd get strong enough to protect her no matter what happened. Accident, attackers... I wanted to protect her. I remembered hearing the tales of Sephiroth back then, how he had unbelievable power. I knew it was completely beyond me... but I still wanted to be as strong as him. So did a lot of the other guys who joined SOLDIER. I wanted to be as strong as Sephiroth, so I could protect Tifa no matter what."

"So cute," she mused.

"Stuff it. Anyway, as I'm sure you know... I never made it into SOLDIER. I had failed myself, failed Tifa. But I guess... in the end, I still ended up saving her. I had even told her I was joining SOLDIER, that I wanted to become as strong as Sephiroth. And yet, I failed to, even despite a promise, more or less, that I'd make it."

She nodded slowly, focusing on each word for a moment. "...You say you were never in SOLDIER... but you got Mako infusions, as your eyes indicate. Which would suggest you were at least _considered_ for SOLDIER..."

"Considered for SOLDIER and SOLDIER material are two different things, though. The Mako infusions overloaded my system, disabled my body for a while. And... the infusions weren't from 'considered SOLDIER material'. I thought you'd know that..."

She looked shocked to hear this. "...If not SOLDIER, then what...?" she began slowly, dreading the answer.

"...Hojo. That day in Nibelheim, when Sephiroth had been stopped... I was the one who stopped him. He nearly killed me in the process, though. Either way, Hojo saw potential in me, being the one who 'vanquished the mighty Sephiroth'. _That's_ where the infusions came from; he tried to make me a Sephiroth clone, but failed rather miserably. The end result... well, I don't remember much between then and picking up Zack's buster sword outside Midgar."

She was shocked speechless. She had run many different scenarios through her mind, wondering about his reasons for wanting to join SOLDIER, about the story behind his Mako-infused eyes... but she had never imagined this possibility.

"I guess... all things considered, it was a good thing. If it weren't for his insanity, I wouldn't have been with AVALANCHE, I'd never have stopped Meteor..." He glanced up at her. "We wouldn't be talking right now, for that matter."

She felt her head nod. "That's true... so in a way, I... guess I'm... grateful...?"

He waved it off. "You don't need to worry about ticking me off. Vincent, sure, but like I said, it was probably a good thing. In my own way, I'm grateful too, however sick that thought might be..."

Silence sank between them again, the waitress bringing their meals after a couple more minutes. They looked down at their respective meals and just sort of poked at their food with their forks.

"...Cloud."

"Hm?" He looked up at her. "What's up?"

She met his eyes, regarded the Mako infusions with a slightly different air. It wasn't one of hatred, but one of awe, of newfound respect. "...Want to switch?" she offered, holding up the edge of her plate.

He looked at her pasta, then at his fish. He eventually shrugged. "Sure. Now's as good a time as any to have something different, I guess."

They swapped plates and both began eating. Cloud's eyes widened in surprise at how good the pasta was, while Elena's eyes widened in what appeared to be disgust.

"Cloud, how can you eat this?" she asked, attempting to wash it down. "It's just..."

He looked at her and chuckled. "Sorry about that... I guess I should've warned you I like my food that spicy."

She took a couple deep gulps from her glass, setting it down. "It's _too_ spicy for sanity," she grumbled. She looked up at the pasta, which he was beginning to eat through rather quickly. "...So should not have switched tonight..." she mumbled, reluctantly going at the fish once more.

--

After Cloud paid the bill ("You weren't crazy about the fish; this is the least I can do for that, at least," he had said), they set off for the hotel.

Elena had a genuinely disgusted look on her face. "I don't understand how you can eat fish that spicy," she finally said. "Were your taste buds killed when you were ten?"

"No. I just... I don't know why, I like spicy food. The spicier, the better, at least that's how it is to me. Though, that pasta was pretty good, I have to admit. Not spicy at all, but still good."

"You're welcome," she replied sharply, crossing her arms. "Rub that in my face, why don't you...?"

"Hey, don't forget, _you_ offered to switch meals," he replied, frowning a little.

She opened her mouth to reply, but closed it; he _did_ have a point there. "...True."

The two of them exchanged small talk as they came to the hotel, and fell quiet shortly after walking inside.

It wasn't until they had arrived at their rooms that Elena finally spoke up. "Even though I hated the fish--"

"Sorry," he said softly.

"--tonight was a good night. It really was." She turned to face him, a smile on her face. "So, thanks Cloud."

He nodded, smiling back at her. "You're welcome. Next time we plan on a food swap, I'll remember you don't like spicy."

She chuckled. "Don't bother. I won't get used to it if you suit your meals to my tastes. We're not going to swap food every single night, you know..."

He raised an eyebrow at her, the smile widening a little more. "Alright."

"...Cloud, I want you to make me a promise, alright?" she finally asked.

He recognized the tone slightly, and focused his full attention on her. "Possibly...?"

She turned to the door. "The next time we go out..." She looked over her shoulder before opening the door. "...don't get that fish."

He grinned, chuckling softly. "Right, I'll keep that in mind."

They stepped into their respective rooms, closing their doors behind them.

It wasn't until Elena turned the lock that she realized what she had said. _The next time we... go out?! Wait, what was I thinking when I said that?! _She threw herself upon the bed, bewildered. "...Alright, for real this time... what the hell is wrong with me...?" she mumbled under her breath, absolutely confused.

* * *

_*sighs* I am really hating my wireless mouse. It likes to quit on me when I least expect it, and it seems to kill batteries faster than I can say 'Is this even NORMAL?!'. I don't have a reliable wired mouse, though, and I'm not a big fan of my laptop's touch pad..._

_...But enough gripe about that._

_I don't really know where I got the idea for this chapter. It was pretty well established in the game why Cloud joined SOLDIER, when he and Tifa were sorting through his thoughts in the Lifestream. I guess I just wanted the next person to ask to be Elena, who really doesn't know anything about Cloud when it comes to trying for SOLDIER._

_...This brings up my own personal point of confusion. What's the real deal here? Did he get 'considered for SOLDIER' and injected from that? Or did he receive the infusions from Hojo, as I've outlined? I'm fairly certain it's my line of events, but considering I haven't played the game in a long, long while... Feel free to give me the correct version if I'm wrong; I'll just work with this one for the sake of the story's progress.  
_

_That reminds me, I picked up Crisis Core about a month or two ago, only to find (to my pure, abject horror) that my PSP was missing. I searched my room for it, and found it -- broken. So yeah, I have that game now, but now I need a new PSP. Yeah, I have just some of the worst luck sometimes. Oh well, it'll pick up somewhere._

_So... I can't remember if I've said this before or not, but I picked up Final Fantasy IV for the DS, and I've been playing it a lot lately. According to a strategy guide I reference once in a while in my local Borders (no, I don't own one; figure I don't need one yet), I'm missing a lot of stuff trying to progress the main storyline. For example, I've completely forgotten about the Augments, and I've forgotten whereabouts to find them. I've also had some rough luck with the last couple bosses. The Dark Elf/Dark Dragon combination in the Lodestone Cavern, for instance? Yeah, he gave me a lot of trouble the first time, but I thoroughly trounced him the second time. And THEN, my venture into the Tower of Zot... yeah, first enemy I encountered one-shotted my entire team. Suffice to say, it was a buzz-kill... but I persevered and made it to the Magus Sisters, who I (somehow) breezed through on my first try. Now I'm stuck at those annoying little six dolls that merge into one after a while -- but by all rights, I'm not stuck at THEM. I beat those little buggers down on my first try. It was GOLBEZ, who immediately followed with NO BREAK IN BETWEEN, that just irked me. His elemental defenses absorbing everything I throw at him but one element... I checked the strategy guide to see if I missed something, and it turns out that yes, I missed the SIMPLEST method to deal with that problem of 'what's his elemental weakness?!'. Libra. Pure and simple, Libra. Even if I don't see his HP, I see his WEAKNESS. Now I just need to regain the drive to smite those six dolls of annoyance once again..._

_...Man, I can rant. I'll also take this opportunity to say that I'm actually... quite sad about losing Tellah. He's one of the coolest 'red mages' (though he's technically a sage in-game) I've ever seen, even despite his extremely low health. He's just fun until he runs out of MP. Of course, I remember the fight against the Magus Sisters. He ran out of MP, and the one that likes casting Reflect and Berserk... don't remember her name, but she Berserked Tellah. He spent the rest of the fight meleeing her for a whopping 7 damage a turn! I mean, compared to Yang's... after 3 rounds of Focus, 3k damage and Cecil's 600 or so, yeah, Tellah's 7 damage staff attack was epic. ...Okay, I'm turning off my sarcasm mechanism now._

_I'm going to hop off FFIV for a while, though, as great a game as it is regardless. Before my rant risks becoming longer than the chapter..._

_On that note, I DO realize this chapter's just a little shorter than the others (on my computer's Document manager, it says it's 12kb, while my other chapters are at an average of 16kb), but I didn't want to risk doing anything else to this chapter for fear of wrecking it just a little. So, there's a short chapter here, and for that, I apologize._

_...It's an odd thing, really. I seem to do my best thinking/story-writing at my local Borders Cafe. I have a guess, however weird and far-fetched the idea may sound, but it's possible that being in the Borders Cafe, that close to books of all shapes, sizes and forms, allows the knowledge of other famous writers (and some not so famous, but still...) to flow through me...? *shrugs* Doubt it, but it's still weird that my best ideas happen in Borders..._

_Alright, I'm going to stop the rant now before I DO make this longer than the chapter. Besides, if I don't save anything to talk about in the NEXT chapter's rant, it's going to be a dull day when I put that one up..._

_I DO, before I go, want to apologize for the lack of consistency I once had. Life happens sometimes, though, and it's slowing me down more than I care for._

_...Same as last chapter's rant. I'm not going to give a 'Next chapter...' for this rant, either, because I'm not 100% sure what it's going to be about. I mean, I have an idea, but nothing I wish to say, lest I ruin the surprise beforehand._

_And with that, I shall return to this story with a new chapter (sometime soon)! -Spiritslayer  
_


	8. Sanity For Pride?

Cloud stared out the window of his hotel room, mind wandering.

Prior, he would've been thinking of Tifa, and the times he missed out on because he was too quiet in expressing how he felt about her.

Lately, though, he was thinking about how Elena had helped him get completely over his little crush and the ensuing depression.

Honestly, this was the best Cloud had felt in a long while, and he preferred it that way.

A knock on his door brought his mind and attention to it, and he turned to face it. "Yes?"

"Cloud, you're awake," came Elena's voice. "Good."

"Something wrong?" he asked, walking toward the door.

"Just peachy. I'm headed out for a bit. You think you'll be fine on your own?"

He sighed. "I'm not a little kid, Elena--"

"Yeah, yeah. You are in _my_ book." She opened the door slowly. "You're _decent_ this time, right?"

He raised an eyebrow, wondering what she meant by that.

As she eyed him up and down, though, he remembered when she barged in without warning, and realized what she meant by 'decent'.

He was fully dressed this time.

"Good." She stretched a little, sighing. "With that in mind, away we go."

"'Away'?" he repeated. "Where the hell are we going, exactly?"

She gestured outside. "It's too nice to stay indoors all day, isn't it? So I thought we'd take ourselves outside. Besides, you're more likely to catch a girl's eye out there."

He opened his mouth to speak, then closed it. "...Alright, I guess," he finally said, shrugging.

She turned to regard him through narrowed eyes. "You don't want to be noticed?"

He shook his head. "That's not what I meant. I just didn't think it was a _legit_ reason."

She grinned. "Is now, so remember that."

He chuckled a little, following her outside. They talked for a while as they made for the exit to the hotel.

Something nagged at the back of Cloud's mind as he talked to her, though he couldn't quite place a finger on it. The nagging feeling must've shown in his expression, however, as she frowned at him. "You alright there, Cloud? You look..." She searched for the word. "...Strained?"

He rolled his eyes. "I'm fine, Elena. You don't need to babysit me every step of the way."

"I know, just making sure. With you, one can never be too careful." She grinned at him before turning away from him to continue walking.

As they walked and talked, Cloud kept trying to identify the nagging feeling in the back of his mind, but found no words for it. He eventually gave up, however, and devoted himself to the conversation at hand.

Ironically for him, it was about chocobos.

"I just don't get it," Elena was complaining. "Sure, they're _nice_ and all, but they leave a smell that pegs any breeder or jockey. There's nothing special about them otherwise."

"Tell that to the Zolom in the marshlands, and get back to me on that," Cloud joked.

"Nah, was going to leave that happy task to _you_," Elena countered, grinning. "Figured I'd sit back and watch while you grew a spine."

"Hey now, that hurts." He grinned despite himself. "I have a spine."

"Do you now?" She turned to face him, still grinning. "Then I have a challenge for you."

"Let me have it."

"I want you to find a girl you're_ definitely_ interested in, and ask her out. _You_ do it yourself. I think it's gotten safe enough to let you be on your own for a while longer than normal--"

"You've been limiting me?"

"--But I can't just leave, either. I haven't accomplished my original goal of hooking you up with someone. Sure, I've helped you out a lot, but in the end, _you_ gotta make the move, right?"

He thought about this for a moment, and felt his mind reel as he realized what Elena was asking of him. "W-wait, you want _me_ to--"

"If you have a _spine_, Cloud, this shouldn't be an _issue_," she said, still grinning. "If you _don't_, however, let me know right now, and I'll keep doing this for you."

He felt the slight goad as he never had before, and steeled his resolve. "Of _course_ I have a spine! Give me until nightfall, and I'll have it done!"

She chuckled. "That's the spirit. Of course, if you _don't_ have someone by then, it's back to me helping you out with even _that_ particular step. Agreed?"

"You won't need to. It'll be done." He crossed his arms confidently.

She nodded after a few moments. "Then you're on your own for the day. You need me for anything, I'll be at the beach for... pretty much the whole day. I need a break."

He nodded, then watched her walk away.

It wasn't until she was out of sight that he realized his knees were shaking.

_What the HELL did I just do?!_ he screamed in his mind. _Did I let my bravado get the better of me AGAIN?!_

He fumed silently, then steeled his resolve. _No. I can't let that rattle me. I've got to make an effort. This should be EASY, dammit! I don't need Elena helping me every step of the way. Yeah, that's right._ His shoulders loosened as he relaxed. _I've got this, no problem._

He set out slowly, his mind only briefly thinking of beating an escape from Costa del Sol, a thought he instantly banished.

--

By early afternoon, Cloud felt his confidence and bravado both slip to depressing levels. He had seen plenty of girls he'd be interested in, but had also seen those same girls hanging off the arms of _other_ guys.

He took Elena's advice about not going for another guy's girl to heart, and suffice to say, had _not_ succeeded thus far.

_Don't tell me she's got me beat on this one_, he thought bitterly, looking around. His eyes rested on the steps leading to the beach, and he considered the prospect of searching there. He took two steps forward, but hesitated.

_Elena's down there. If she sees me still at it, she'll never let me hear the end of it._ He bit his lip a little, trying to concentrate. _Think, Cloud, THINK! You can do this! It's just a matter of perseverance!_

He steeled his resolve once more, albeit not nearly as firmly as before lunch, and set about his challenge once more.

--

With just twenty minutes till dusk, Cloud was dejected.

_I should NOT have said that so boldly_, he thought angrily, cursing himself out. _Now she'll never believe I have a spine_.

He walked toward the beach to report his failure, to endure Elena's taunts, to go back to her holding his hand every step of the way on this long, bumpy road they were on.

He stepped down to the beach slowly, not eager to find Elena at all. He just assumed skip town, but decided against it; she'd have his head if he did that.

He looked around lazily, and cursed his luck; his eyes somehow managed to settle directly upon Elena, who was lying upon a beach chair, her eyes closed.

He sighed defeatedly and walked toward her. As he did, he cast a glance toward the sea. He watched the setting sun cast its light upon the rippling ocean, and thought about how badly he failed in one day.

Elena's eyes opened as he got closer, and she turned her head to face him. She gave him a small grin before looking out over the oceanic waters. "So, how'd it go?"

"...Not so well," he ventured slowly.

She clicked her tongue. "I thought you said you could get it done before nightfall," she said, still grinning. "Not so confident in your bravado now, are you?"

He remained silent, looking at her.

"Let that be a lesson to you, Cloud. When someone puts a challenge before you, don't assume your bravado can be enough to get you through it." She glanced at him, the triumphant grin still on her face. "I didn't _think_ you could do it. All talk, no action. How many did you even _approach_?"

"..." He didn't want to answer, but he knew silence was as good an answer as any.

"None? Heh. I suspected as much." She sighed, closing her eyes. "Well, back to the drawing board with you. Luckily, I had a few ideas in case you messed this one up, so this shouldn't be too difficult to work around."

He continued to stare at her. "...You counted on this, didn't you? You wanted me to 'flounder helplessly' while you enjoyed a day to yourself, didn't you?" he asked quietly.

"Aw, now you make it sound like I'm approaching this as a Turk," she said, a mock pout on her face.

"...You did."

"I did. Figured it's one way to teach you your limits, and it seems it was a _good_ way to do it." She opened her eyes and grinned again. "Was I so wrong? Hm? Did it _not _work?"

He blinked in disbelief. "You're something else, you know that?" he said finally, slumping down on the beach chair next to her. "You really are..."

She laughed a little. "Thank you. I like to think so." She stared out over the ocean for a while, humming to herself.

_She's in a good mood, and I'm down and out_, he thought, glancing at her. _And in the end, it's EXACTLY what she was aiming for._

"So, it's a lot harder to do this than you first thought, isn't it?" she quipped. "Did you think I had an easy time doing this, by chance? Did you think it was so _simple_ for me? For that matter, do you _now_?"

"...It's difficult," he conceded. "It really is. Not that I thought you had it easy, I just thought you had it... well, _easier_ than I did."

She laughed. "No, not quite. It's actually harder for me, since most of the women I talked to didn't want to try dating a guy who can't even ask them himself. That _is_ ignoring the fact that I insisted over and over that I was matchmaking, but some were just adamant and stupid. Mostly stupid."

He looked out at the water, watching the sun set. As it did, he thought about how he had failed--

His eyes widened. _No. The day's not over yet. Night hasn't fallen yet._ He stared at the sunlight on the water, his mind racing._ There's still time to accomplish something. I don't know HOW, exactly but there's still time._

He was no longer paying attention to Elena, who was going on and on about the difficulties of matchmaking.

As she rambled, he formulated a plan, one shoddily tossed together, but a plan regardless. _If this doesn't work, so be it. If it does, so be it._

She stopped talking and looked at him. "You alright? You seem kinda out of it."

"I'm fine," he said quickly. He stood slowly, stretching his arms. "I'm fine."

She eyed him suspiciously, but shrugged after a moment. "If you say so, then you must be. You've never lied to me before, so-- oh, I'm sorry! You _have_ lied! You told me you had a spine, but it turns out you _didn't_! That's fine, though; it's not like you knew the truth of the matter at first."

As she continued to make fun of him, he cleared his mind, reviewing his plan over and over in his mind. _This has GOT to work, or she'll never let me hear the end of it_.

She fell silent after a few moments, eyes regarding him. "...Did I offend you or something? I guess I _have_ been going at this a bit too much... sorry, Cloud, if I offended you."

He shook his head slightly. "No, it's... it's fine. Actually, Elena..."

"Yeah?"

"...I _did_ ask someone. _Just one_."

"But you said--"

"Nothing. I hadn't said anything when you asked. You just assumed I'd asked nobody." He sat down slowly, trying to relax enough to make the plan work.

She gave him a doubtful look, eyes narrowed. "...Who's the girl?" she finally asked. "What's she look like? Furthermore, _where_ is she?"

"Name's Tina," he said carefully. "Red hair, emerald eyes. I asked her, yes, but she turned me down; said she was going to the Gold Saucer with a group of friends."

Elena stared at him for a moment. "Tina, huh? Last name?"

"Uh..."

"Nice try, Cloud. Almost convincing enough to fool me." She rolled her eyes, resting her hand upon her forehead. "Are you really that freakin' stupid? You sit there, take _all_ that crap from me, and _then_ tell me you 'asked a girl'? That was my first warning sign. The second one was the name. Too damn _similar_ to the name of a certain _barmaid_ we both know. Switch out one letter, and ta-dah! Tifa. Red hair, _emerald_ eyes?" She chuckled darkly. "You were better off staying quiet, Cloud, because I wouldn't think you're a horrible liar now if you had."

He stared out over the ocean, mind sinking with the sun as it began to set. The orange glow seemed to represent the dying desire to best Elena at her own game, and he knew, in the back of his mind, that he was beaten.

She clicked her tongue disapprovingly. "I thought you were brighter than that, Cloud. Real slick failure right there." She watched the sun set as well. "Well, shall we watch the sun set on the embarrassment that was your day?"

He didn't reply, which Elena took to be a silent 'yes'. She kicked back, humming a soft tune.

Cloud's mind reeled as the sun reached the halfway point. _There's got to be SOMETHING I can do! I don't have much time left, but there's got to be SOMETHING!_

She glanced over at him, her expression softening. "...You alright, Cloud? In all seriousness, today must have been a bit much for you..."

"I just... I can't believe I lost a challenge to you. No, I can't believe I set up such an impossible scenario for myself is more like it."

She nodded slowly. "That's understandable. I actually went through something like this myself, though it was a challenge I put before myself at the time. So I know what it's like to be defeated at the hands of my challenge."

As the sun was three-quarters down, Cloud sighed wearily.

"Cloud, come on. Let's get back to the hotel. You need some rest." She stood slowly, extending a hand toward him.

He stared up at her, watched her smile at him comfortingly. He looked at her hand briefly before taking it slowly.

She pulled him to his feet (a task made difficult by his laziness) and sighed. "It's just nerves getting the best of you, Cloud. Don't worry; things will be okay. I promise. After all, look at me. I survived that same challenge, and I'm fine now, right?"

He nodded, glancing at the sun once more. It was almost completely set now, and he thought about how pathetic his plan had been, how his day _had_ ultimately ended in failure--

He blinked. _No. No, it's not over yet. She hasn't beaten me yet._

She looked at him, then turned her gaze to the object of his attention. "Another day, come and gone..."

"Elena."

"Hm?" She looked at him. "What's up?"

"When you overcame your challenge... did you end up asking anyone in the end?"

She shrugged. "No, but what's it matter? All I was trying to do was move on from my heartbroken stupor, and the challenge helped me do that much."

"So you've never overcome the challenge yourself." He looked at her intently. "You set me on a challenge even _you_ couldn't overcome."

"Well... yeah, I guess so." She raised an eyebrow at him. "What's your point, Cloud? You going to use that against me somehow, or are you just--"

_I've gone insane._ "Elena, would you go out with me?" Cloud blurted suddenly.

Silence settled between the two of them.

_Uncomfortable_ silence.

Elena's expression was one of intense shock, a shock that kept her speechless.

His was one that looked like he was about to get hit.

The sun set completely not more than a minute after he asked.

_Slap_.

Elena's hand stung from the impact, her expression still shocked. "I-I-I..." Words failed her. Her voice had all but abandoned her.

Cloud rubbed his cheek, sighing. "Guess I deserved that..." he muttered.

Elena's mind was racing at such a quick pace, she started to reply to him wordlessly. Her mind continued to race through the short outburst she was _trying_ to convey, and was surprised when her voice returned.

She was _horrified_, however to hear her voice return simply to say the last word of her outburst, which was "Yes."

He stared at her, wondering if she was playing head games with him. He decided she wasn't, though, and shook his head a little. "First you hit me, then you accept...?"

She felt her voice abandon her once more.

"...Well then..." He shifted a little. "I guess... that's that. We... have a date ahead of us..."

She watched him as he walked toward the hotel, her mind racing.

She was _astounded_ that Cloud had asked her _at all_, even if it _had_ been unintentional. She wondered briefly if it was even _unintentional_, if he had somehow planned that from the very beginning.

Most of all, however, she wondered why she wasn't more _offended_ than she first thought she'd be.

She realized belatedly that her heart was pounding, that her breathing was rapid.

_Surely... surely I wasn't HOPING he would_? she wondered wildly.

She walked to the hotel in a daze as night settled over Costa del Sol.

* * *

_I've finally updated!!! I'd be much happier if I weren't so... DISGUSTED with myself about the delay..._

_So yes. That did just happen. It may seem like a desperation kind of thing on Cloud's part, but really... it is. It really is._

_I've begun winding this one down, and, in fact, have the next chapter ready to go, although I'm not going to submit it just yet. Want to give you guys a chance to taken in this one first, imagine how the next chapter will go, and then see which of you are very intuitive. I'm undecided as to whether the next chapter will be the final chapter or not, though... it definitely reads like a final chapter, to be sure, but I don't want to end it so... abruptly, especially after such a long break in updates. I'll see where it goes._

_So yes, it dawned on me that I started this story from Cloud's perspective, but somewhere along the line, it focused primarily on Elena. I decided to give the spotlight back to Cloud this time around, though, just to change things up. As I said, the next chapter's done already, and that one happens to be from Elena's perspective, too._

_Next chapter, Cloud and Elena begin their unexpected, not to mention awkward, date. Will it end well for either of them, or will something go awry?_

_And so, with the latest update, as well as that short preview, I leave for the time being. I shall return once I've decided on the next chapter's status; that is, final chapter or not._

_Cheers. *raises chai tea latte* -Spiritslayer_


End file.
